Reaching the pinnacle from Doupo

Chapter 615 The Final Struggle, Thunder Descends
"Brother Huoyao, this competition...is of extraordinary significance and utmost importance to our clan!"

Sensing Huo Yao's resolute intention to obstruct him, Yao Wangui's expression also turned ashen, his eyes like cold stars as he stared intently into Huo Yao's eyes, his meaningful words carrying an undeniable weight.

Huo Yao shrugged, but his tone was firm and unwavering: "My promise is priceless and heavier than a mountain!"

Seeing that the other party showed no intention of backing down, Yao Wangui's face instantly turned ashen.

In the end, he could only let out a cold snort and sit down again—Huo Yao's cultivation and combat power were far superior to his own, and a direct confrontation would not be a wise move.

Taking a deep breath, Yao Wangui turned his head to look at Lin Yuan, who was about to succeed. His cold eyes narrowed slowly, and the killing intent in his heart grew stronger.

"As expected, my judgment was correct. This boy... cannot be allowed to live!"

"At such a young age, not only does he possess such profound cultivation and alchemy skills, but he also knows how to sow discord among our ancient clans. He even managed to make that stubborn old man Huo Yao disregard the feelings between the Yan and Yao clans and forcibly obstruct my actions. Given time, what will become of him?"

With his mind settled, he gently clenched his hand within his wide sleeves, and a jade slip emitting a faint light appeared in his palm.

Just as the two Dou Sheng were "facing off" in the void, some alchemy masters in the square finally discovered the alchemy technique that Lin Yuan was using.

Immediately, gasps of amazement rose and fell like a tidal wave, resounding throughout the room.

"Is this the method of condensing matter into pills? To dare to use such a technique in the refining of high-level pills, this junior is truly audacious and astonishing!"

"The method of condensing matter and forming an elixir... Master, what is that?"

"Haha, that's an extremely profound alchemy technique... However, it has nothing to do with you, a mere sixth-grade kid. I'll tell you after you've refined a seventh-grade pill."

"Tsk tsk, so young yet so accomplished, truly a force to be reckoned with, a force to be reckoned with!"

"To wield such advanced techniques with such mastery, just how many high-level pills has this junior refined? It's truly unimaginable!"

"Do you feel that way too? Me too!"

Hearing these exclamations and praises, Qinglin's pretty face blossomed like a flower, her eyes sparkling with pride and joy.

"Hmph, the high-grade pills that Young Master has refined far exceed the combined total of all of you!"

The girl's lips curled up, and she let out a smug hum in her heart.

"Damn it!" Not far away, Yao Tian watched Lin Yuan's fluid movements, gritted his teeth, and felt a surge of resentment and dejection. "Has this bastard's skill in alchemy actually reached such a level?"

Among those present, the number of people who could use the Condensing Material Pill with such skill was definitely no more than a handful, and... that did not include Yao Tian.

Just from the alchemy techniques alone, Yao Tian could deeply appreciate the enormous gap between himself and his opponent.

Beside her, Yao Ling's beautiful eyes darted around, gazing at the composed figure with a look of admiration. The person she had chosen had indeed exceeded her expectations!
At the same time, she was also very confused.

"In just a few years, he not only broke through to the advanced semi-saint level, but also became a ninth-grade grandmaster. How did he manage to balance his alchemy skills and cultivation level, and achieve such great progress in both?"

It should be noted that while the Yao Clan's investment of substantial resources was undoubtedly a factor in her and Yao Tian's tremendous progress, their own countless hours and efforts also played a crucial role.

However, no one can help her now, because Lin Yuan's final step... is about to be completed!

The fluctuations within the fire lotus grew stronger and stronger. In a certain instant, it finally crossed the boundary in the dark, and a thunderous roar resounded in the sky.

In just a few blinks, the sky was covered with dark clouds.

Streaks of pitch-black lightning, carrying destructive power, darted through the clouds. The terrifying force that sent chills down their spines left many people horrified... This was the first time in their lives they had ever witnessed such terrifying lightning.

Amidst the billowing black clouds, even the black thunderclouds summoned by Yao Tian and Yao Ling slowly contracted.

On the high platform, Elder Lin looked at the magnificent black clouds in the sky and finally breathed a sigh of relief. A gratified smile appeared on his lips. "Success!"

The strength of the Dan Lei (a type of magical energy) can, to a large extent, accurately reflect the grade of the elixir.

Although both were Black Demon Lightning, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that the thundercloud summoned by Lin Yuan was far more powerful than the thunderclouds created by the Medicine Clan duo.

High in the sky, the black clouds writhed and rolled like a giant beast, as if brewing something.

The entire world fell into a deathly silence, without the sound of thunder. However, it was precisely this deathly silence that stirred up an indescribable fear from the depths of one's heart, like the calm before a storm.

"Yao Tian, ​​Yao Ling, aren't you going to admit defeat yet?"

On the stone platform, Lin Yuan withdrew his gaze from Lei Yun and calmly looked at the two people opposite him, speaking with a smile, exuding confidence and composure.

His handsome face stood out even more in the flickering firelight.

"Lin Yuan, you're too smug!" Yao Tian gave Lin Yuan a deep look, then his eyes snapped open and closed until they turned bloodshot. He gritted his teeth and said, "The Pill Gathering isn't completely over yet. Only by catching the pill lightning that's summoned can you be considered to have successfully refined the pill..."

He paused, then a strange smile appeared on his effeminate face: "And in the alchemy competition, there's room for manipulation in this step!"

The secret method of synthesizing different flames is extremely important to the Medicine Clan.

As the young clan leader, even if he has to abandon his pride and resort to any means necessary as Elder Wan Gui suggested, he is determined to win the Pill Gathering this time and bring that secret technique back.

With his mind made up, Yao Tian no longer hesitated.

His eyes instantly turned sharp as knives, and his hands moved with lightning speed, forming several hand seals.

The moment he completed the hand seal, he flicked his finger, and two streams of crimson blood spurted out: one, like a small red snake, splashed into the medicine cauldron in front of him; the other, like a sharp arrow, shot into the dark clouds above.

As the blood splattered, the black cloud that had accumulated immense power suddenly turned a strange dark red.

"Blood Spirit Sacrifice, attracting thunder from the sky!"

Yao Tian changed the hand seals and chanted incantations, causing a strange fluctuation to ripple in the medicine cauldron in front of him.

To everyone's astonishment, the thunderclouds above Yaotian seemed to be drawn by an invisible hand, crashing into the black thunderclouds summoned by Lin Yuan, and then... merging into one!
At the same time, the remaining thunderclouds in the sky, like birds returning to their nests, all converged towards the source of the Lin Yuan Dan thunder.

"Rumble--"

When all the thunderclouds in the sky converged, the originally calm black thunderclouds finally erupted into chaos.

As streaks of black lightning crackled, terrifying thunderous power, enough to chill even a half-saint, poured down from the sky with a deep rumble, causing the battle qi within everyone's bodies to become slightly stagnant.

"Cough-cough-"

Having used this forbidden secret technique, Yao Tian suffered a backlash, his face flushed an unusual red, and he coughed up several mouthfuls of blood.

However, his eyes and voice became frantic amidst the intertwining joy, sorrow, and despair: "Haha, Lin Yuan, the battle is not over! A half-saint cannot withstand this pill lightning. As long as you cannot withstand it, the championship will still be in our clan's hands."

High-grade pills possess such potent energy that they can trigger the forces of heaven and earth to destroy them. If the alchemist cannot protect the pill, it will naturally be destroyed. Surviving the pill lightning and preserving it is the final test of the Pill Gathering.

Although this approach would lower the quality of one's own pills due to the lack of lightning power to cleanse them, it would be worthwhile if it could destroy the opponent's pills!

After all, if the opponent runs out of pills, how can they participate in the competition?

As for their own side, even though the quality of their ninth-grade pills was slightly lower, they were still far superior to those of mere eighth-grade pills and were more than enough to win the crown at the Pill Gathering.

Yao Tian has always been proud and arrogant. If he could, he wouldn't want this kind of less-than-honorable victory.

As the young patriarch of the Medicine Clan, he needs this victory!

Upon hearing Yao Tian's words, the scene stirred with various expressions of worry, regret, anticipation, and schadenfreude, all directed at Lin Yuan on the stone platform.

Can this person truly withstand the Dan Lei, a strike that only a Dou Sheng (Battle Saint) can withstand?

On the high platform, many elders of the Pill Tower frowned, but the three giants and Elder Lin looked at Lin Yuan, who stood with his hands behind his back on the stone platform, with slightly strange expressions...

A Battle Saint? The Medicine Clan brat's plan has likely failed again!
Just as everyone's thoughts were racing, a circular hole slowly appeared in the center of the dark clouds, its dark shape resembling the deepest black hole.

Upon seeing this, many people present felt their hair stand on end.

The next instant, a black lightning bolt as thick as a bucket shot out from the hole and hurtled toward the icy blue fire lotus.

Looking at the black lightning, apart from Yao Tian and Yao Ling, who had the strength of a half-saint, and Dan Chen, Cao Ying, and Xiao Yan, who knew Lin Yuan's strength, the other contestants on the field were all horrified and hurriedly retreated.

Black Demon Lightning is a destructive force of this level. If an ordinary expert is touched even a trace of it, there is a 99% chance that they will be completely destroyed.

Lin Yuan moved swiftly, rising into the air like a ghost, and appeared directly above the fire lotus.

With a blink of an eye, an extremely powerful aura surged from his body like lightning, instantly breaking through the limit of a half-saint and entering a completely new realm.

"This aura...is it a Dou Sheng?"

Sensing this aura, the spectators in the square instantly turned horrified with shock.

"A one-star Dou Sheng?"

Yao Tian stood there in disbelief, muttering to himself, "How could this be... how could this be..."

Lin Yuan paid no attention to the reactions of the crowd. After raising his aura to the mid-stage of a one-star Dou Sheng, he slowly raised his head, and black lightning flashed from his dark eyes.

As he watched the approaching black lightning, he slowly clenched his fist.

In an instant, the energy in this entire world seemed to be drawn together by some force, and it gathered overwhelmingly on his fist.

A Dou Sheng (Battle Saint) powerhouse can actively achieve oneness with heaven and earth, thereby controlling the energy of a region. Even without Dou Qi (Battle Qi) within their body, they can still unleash world-destroying attacks.

This is one of the reasons why Dou Sheng (Battle Saint) level experts are so powerful!

Amidst the astonished gazes, a vast amount of energy converged on Lin Yuan's fist, transforming into a condensed and strange energy crystal that shimmered with an unusual, crystalline light.

With a low shout, Lin Yuan stepped into the air and punched the black lightning.

"Break it for me!"

The two collided violently, and a terrible storm of destruction instantly swept outwards from the center of the man and the thunderbolt.

Under the raging fury of this terrifying energy storm, the space within a radius of a thousand feet collapsed with a series of cracking sounds, like shattered glass, turning a large area of ​​space into a pitch-black void...

Gazing at the pitch-black sky, most people's expressions changed drastically, as if they were witnessing the end of the world, yet they were reluctant to look away.

This level of clash is extremely rare to witness...

For most people, if they were caught in this energy storm, they would probably not last a single breath before their body and soul would be completely annihilated in the storm.

However, after Lin Yuan took the blow head-on, his aura remained calm and composed.

The three giants on the high platform were slightly shocked when they saw this scene. "Is this the power of a Dou Sheng?" Although they had expected it, they still couldn't help but be shocked after truly witnessing Lin Yuan's strength.

Ahead, Elder Lin raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes: "Is this little fellow trying to hide his strength?"

He knew that Lin Yuan had advanced to the level of a two-star Dou Sheng more than a month ago.

On the other side, seemingly due to the strange effect of the forbidden technique of medicine, the dark clouds in the sky did not dissipate after a single strike, unlike ordinary black demon lightning.

"Swoosh!" "Swoosh!" "Swoosh!" "Swoosh!" "Swoosh!"

Five whooshing sounds rang out, followed by five black bolts of lightning as thick as buckets shooting out of the hole and striking down at the Ice Blue Fire Lotus.

Each of these five bolts of lightning was no less powerful than a full-force attack from a Dou Sheng (Battle Saint) expert.

Even the well-informed Elder Lin felt a chill run down his spine at this scene, and couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat... Such a powerful attack would not be easy for him, even with his cultivation at the two-star Dou Sheng level.

However, Lin Yuan remained unusually calm in the face of such a terrifying attack, as if he had used a secret technique to make his aura surge to the late stage of a one-star Dou Sheng.

At the same time, he moved his hands rapidly, forming several profound hand seals in a smooth and flowing manner.

"Myriad Transformations Heavenly Flame Palm!"

The moment the seal was formed, Lin Yuan's eyes sharpened, and he let out a low shout in his heart.

In an instant, the azure ice flames surged forth from his body, transforming into five giant fiery hands engraved with strange runes. These hands swept towards the five bolts of lightning, instantly seizing them and refining them in a flash…

A quarter of an hour later, the raging energy storm that had been raging between heaven and earth, along with the huge black clouds that had covered the sky, finally began to slowly dissipate.

The long-awaited warm sunshine once again poured down from the sky, illuminating the world that had been shrouded in darkness for so long.

At the same time, the large area of ​​space that had collapsed due to the energy storm began to gradually repair itself, the cracks closing little by little, and the spatial structure becoming stable and intact again.

Everyone turned their gaze to the sky, where a young figure stood suspended in mid-air.

The terrifying energy storm from before failed to harm the young man in the slightest.

At this moment, the young man played with the black lightning bead in his hand—a lightning bead condensed from black demonic lightning—and an arrogant and unparalleled aura unconsciously emanated from it…

(End of this chapter)