While in Battle Through the Heavens, one can pre-appoint oneself as an emperor.

[Follow-up: Securing a top-ten finish in the Elite Ranking Competition.]

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The sweet juice of the Heavenly Jade Fruit flowed down Chen Xiao's throat and into his stomach, but before Chen Xiao could savor it, it transformed into a surge of immense energy that erupted within his body.

Strangely enough, despite the immense medicinal power, Chen Xiao did not feel any pain. The medicinal power was extremely gentle, and the only discomfort was that he felt a little full, like someone with a very small appetite gritting their teeth and eating three times their usual amount of food.

Without time to fully appreciate its effects, Chen Xiao quickly formed cultivation hand seals and began to guide the powerful medicinal energy, directing it to circulate along the internal cultivation path.

Again and again, in a never-ending cycle.

As the discomfort from being stretched subsided, Chen Xiao's strength was rapidly approaching that of an eight-star Dou Ling...

hum~

A petite figure appeared silently in the room; Zi Yan had returned.

She glanced at Chen Xiao, who was focused on refining the medicinal power of the Heavenly Jade Fruit, and her delicate nose twitched slightly.

I'm late!

Disappointment flashed across her face for a moment, but quickly dissipated. She went straight to the wooden window, sat down, took out the unfinished medicinal herb, took a bite, and then frowned as she stared at the unrecognizable herb in her hand, as if questioning, "Why do you taste so bad?"

Sensing Chen Xiao's ever-increasing aura, Zi Yan could only sigh silently and continue eating, protecting Chen Xiao as she ate, completely forgetting that she was in the inner courtyard, the safest place in the entire Black Corner Region.

From dusk till nightfall, and from nightfall till late at night, until Zi Yan had used up three medicinal herbs, Chen Xiao on the bed finally trembled slightly and slowly opened his eyes.

"I knew you were only a Seven-Star Dou Ling, so where did you get the confidence to compete for the top three on the rankings? Turns out you've got some good stuff hidden away!"

Chen Xiao had already sensed Zi Yan's arrival, so he wasn't surprised to hear the noise.

"Of course, I don't do things I'm not sure of. I'm currently at the peak of the eight-star Dou Ling level. It shouldn't be difficult for me to advance to the nine-star level before the Strong Ranking Tournament begins."

Zi Yan nodded slightly. Chen Xiao's cultivation speed was something she had always admired.

"If you include the students in the inner court, there are exactly five nine-star Dou Ling and four eight-star Dou Ling. You guys will probably be in the top ten. I wonder how many more Dou Wangs will emerge after the top ten receive their rewards this year."

Chen Xiao pondered for a moment, recalling the rewards for the top ten on the leaderboard.

Seeing that he didn't reply, Ziyan thought he didn't understand, so she immediately adopted the posture of a mentor, stood up with her hands behind her back, and began to explain.

"According to past practice, as long as you can enter the top ten in this competition, you are qualified to become an elder candidate. There are many elders in the inner courtyard now, and they all came up through this process. However, of the top ten in the last competition, only three people chose to stay in the inner courtyard, and they were all fire-attribute elders. The rest left."

"Besides the hidden reward of being an elder candidate, the top ten will also be qualified to enter the ninth floor of the Heavenly Flame Refining Tower to undergo a Heart Fire Origin Body Tempering. This is the most attractive thing for the inner court students."

"Do you know what 'forging the body with inner fire' means?"

"I don't know." Chen Xiao shook his head and smiled, letting the little dragon man have his fill of being a mentor.

"Hehe, simply put, having undergone this Heart Fire Source tempering, unless you're incredibly unlucky, is equivalent to obtaining a pass to advance to the Dou Wang level!"

"Of course, it's just a pass, meant to ensure they won't encounter any more bottlenecks when breaking through to the Dou Wang realm. After undergoing Heartfire Body Tempering, I've heard that only two or three out of ten people can break through on the spot each time, and over ninety percent of these people are fire-attribute."

"I'm telling you this mainly to prepare you mentally, so you won't be unable to accept it when the time comes."

Chen Xiao chuckled, "You're actually quite good."

Have you tried this "Heart Fire Body Tempering" technique?

Zi Yan shook her head. "Not yet. The Strong Ranking Competition is held every five years, and this year is my first time experiencing it. However, I went underground with Old Man Su, and I didn't like it there. Besides, Heart Fire Body Tempering isn't very effective for those above the Dou Wang level. If Old Man Su hadn't disagreed, I wouldn't have wanted to participate in this boring competition."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiao was speechless.

While everyone else was fighting tooth and nail for a spot to undergo the Heartfire Body Tempering, this little dragon was showing off.

After finishing the business, Zi Yan suddenly changed the subject.

Are you going to the Black Corner Region again tomorrow?

"Yes, we'll set off at dawn."

"Then take me with you!"

"No way! I can't keep an eye on you right now. But once I break through to the Dou Wang level, if you're interested, I can take you to a much farther place to have some fun."

"You said it, you can't go back on your word!"

...

The next day.

As dawn broke, Chen Xiao went to the Grand Elder's study, neatly arranged the ancient books he had finished reading, and took some that he hadn't read yet before heading straight for the Black Corner Region.

Although he had the Purple Cloud Wings, which made traveling much easier, Chen Xiao rarely used this flying combat technique after he gradually mastered the Three Thousand Thunder Movement.

After practicing the Three Thousand Thunder Movements with frequent stops along the way, Chen Xiao finally arrived at his chosen destination after two days.

Maple City!

In the Black Corner Region, this city is not actually one of the largest in terms of size; however, its reputation is particularly renowned.

It's not that a mountain is high, but that it is sacred because of the immortals who dwell there.

The master of this city is none other than the sixth-grade alchemist, the Medicine Emperor Han Feng!

Chen Xiao has no intention of provoking Han Feng for the time being, but because he covets the Heavenly Cold Qi, it is foreseeable that he will definitely come into contact with him in the near future.

Moreover, the probability of them taking action is very, very high.

Therefore, Chen Xiao came to Fengcheng this time to gain experience and also to find out the details of Fengcheng.

At the very least, knowing how many powerful figures are vying for Han Feng's attention and obeying his orders will greatly facilitate Chen Xiao's future actions.

With this in mind, Chen Xiao spent the next month or so training in Maple City, going there whenever he dealt with loot of average value.

A high-level Battle Spirit is considered to be of mid-to-high level in the Black Corner Region. If he were to move around in other cities, he would inevitably attract attention.

However, within Maple City, Han Feng's subordinates completely disregarded Chen Xiao.

Thanks to Han Feng's status as an alchemist, countless powerful figures from Feng City come to him every year, even those on the Black List who are Battle Kings or Battle Emperors, who would occasionally ask Han Feng for help.

It was in this context that Chen Xiao's appearance was like a butterfly landing on a withered flower branch.

Insignificant.

While Chen Xiao was silently watching Han Feng, the Canaan Academy's Inner Court Ranking Competition finally began.