Battle Through the Heavens: Xiao Yan, I am your second master.

"Yes! Thank you for your appreciation, Clan Chief. I will take my leave now." Xia Yilong formally bowed to Xiao Lin, then bowed again to Xiao Li before departing.

"Tsk, I never thought my impulsive older brother would know this trick now. People's hearts have changed so much." Xiao Li said, clicking his teeth with his arms crossed.

“I didn’t want to either, but now that I’m in this position, I have to do what’s expected of me. I can’t be as reckless as before. I have to be responsible for the entire family!” Xiao Lin said earnestly.

"Let's go see Grandpa first. I brought a lot of good stuff this time. By the way, did you take your Spirit-Boosting Pill, Big Brother?" Xiao Li asked.

“You took it, so what? I’m already a three-star Dou Wang, but I can’t tell your cultivation level. Your cultivation level is higher than mine now, right?” Xiao Lin couldn’t tell Xiao Li’s cultivation level as soon as Xiao Li came in.

"I'm now an eight-star Dou Wang, but what a pity! My alchemy skills have improved greatly. I recently refined a top-grade Dou Ling Pill, which might have helped you raise your cultivation by two stars! What a waste!"

Xiao Li didn't expect his elder brother to take the Fighting Spirit Pill so quickly.

"Of course I'll eat what you made. Don't think I don't know. The one you gave me was of excellent quality. I was just a beginner two-star Dou Wang, but after taking it, I broke through to three-star Dou Wang. I still have a lot of medicinal power left."

I'm still a little short of becoming a four-star Dou Wang, but I should be able to break through again in the next six months.

Xiao Lin knew that Xiao Li was wholeheartedly devoted to the family, and that Xiao Li had worried a lot about the family.

"Hey~ It's alright. You can only take the Battle Spirit Pill once, but I can also refine pills to help you cultivate. Don't worry, big brother, I'm confident I can make you a Battle Emperor within five years!"

Most pills that enhance cultivation can only be taken once, but pills that can assist cultivation can be taken multiple times. Coincidentally, Xiao Li happens to have pills that can assist Dou Wang in cultivation, just like the Qingyuan Pill.

Xiao Lin led Xiao Li to the back mountain of the Xiao family. There was a thatched hut in the forest behind the mountain, where an old man in a gray robe was watering a small tree in front of him with a watering can.

"Ok?"

The old man noticed two people approaching, looked up, and saw that it was his grandson.

"Hehe, Li'er is back, please sit down!"

The old man was Xiao Ting. He had now broken through to the Dou Huang level and was no longer worried about his lifespan. He found it boring to stay in seclusion, so he built a thatched hut on the back mountain and lived a carefree life.

"Haha, Grandpa, you're in a good mood." Xiao Li cupped his hands in greeting to his grandfather. Xiao Li also noticed that the wrinkles on his grandfather's face had become much shallower, his complexion was exceptionally rosy, and he was in very good spirits.

"Hehe, we can't just keep cultivating. We need to relax a bit and cultivate our minds." Xiao Ting said with a smile. He noticed Xiao Li's cultivation level as soon as he arrived. Eight-star Dou Wang, he was about to surpass him.

"Li'er, Grandpa thanks you for your cultivation technique and for the pills." Xiao Ting naturally knew from Xiao Lin where he obtained the cultivation technique and the pills.

It could be said that this grandfather didn't help his grandson much; on the contrary, the grandson was running around for him.

"Grandpa, what do you mean by this? You are my own grandpa, if I don't love you, who will I love? Why are you being so polite with your grandson? Come, come! Grandpa, your grandson has prepared a gift for you."

Xiao Li took out a jade box made of ice from his storage ring and then pushed it to Xiao Ting.

"Ta-da! Top-grade Royal Extreme Pill, I refined it. I was very lucky at the time, and the pill turned out to be of the highest quality. I estimate that this Royal Extreme Pill can raise your cultivation level by two stars!"

Xiao Li proudly said that these were the top-grade Royal Extreme Pills he had refined at Canaan Academy. He had used fifteen sets of materials to refine ten Royal Extreme Pills. Xiao Li had chosen five of the best quality ones to keep, and left the rest for Canaan Academy.

As for the Broken Sect Pill, Xiao Li also refined it and succeeded. He refined two pills, so it can be said that Xiao Li is now considered a peak sixth-grade alchemist.

However, luck played a significant role in both of these pill refining attempts. Although luck is also a part of strength, Xiao Li triggered the Pill Soul Realm during these two pill refining attempts.

In the Soul Refining Realm, the alchemist's soul power is amplified infinitely. Faced with that fleeting yet terrifying soul power, there is no chance of failure in refining pills. In other words, as long as you enter this state, the pill refining will definitely be successful!

Mang Tianchi couldn't help but sigh at Xiao Li's incredible luck, so much so that he was somewhat jealous.

Chapter 45 Tournament of the Strongest

"This..." Xiao Ting was so shocked that he couldn't speak. He had just broken through to the Dou Huang realm by luck. With the help of the powerful mid-level Earth-rank cultivation technique, he had reached the peak of the one-star Dou Huang realm through his hard work during this period of time. He would be able to break through to the two-star Dou Huang realm in a few days.

As a result, his grandson brought over the Imperial Extreme Pill, and it was a top-grade Imperial Extreme Pill!

Previously, his eldest grandson Xiao Lin told him that Xiao Li had given him a Dou Ling Pill, which he had refined himself. How long has it been? How come he can refine the Huang Ji Pill now?

"Don't worry, Grandpa didn't borrow this from the teacher. I made it myself. Look."

Xiao Li slightly raised his right hand, and a transparent flame instantly appeared on his right hand.

"Strange fire?"

Xiao Lin and Xiao Ting were shocked; neither of them had expected that Xiao Li would actually obtain a strange fire.

“That’s right. My alchemy skills have already surpassed my teacher’s, so there’s no need to worry. Leave the family’s advancement to me,” Xiao Li said with a smile.

“In that case, Grandpa will accept it. By the way, Li’er, after Grandpa broke through to the Douhuang realm, I went to the depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range and found some good things, including two nice medicinal herbs. Take a look.”

Xiao Ting suddenly remembered that after his breakthrough, he wanted to test his strength as a Dou Huang, so he went to the depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range and happened to encounter two fifth-order magical beasts fighting over a medicinal herb.

Xiao Ting took out a wooden box and opened it.

"Eight-Tower Demon Needle Fruit! A medicinal ingredient for refining the Spirit Fusion Pill, what a treasure!" Xiao Li was surprised that his grandfather had obtained this medicinal ingredient.

"And another thing, I found a severely injured sixth-tier magical beast. It seemed to be protecting something, so I killed it. Its sixth-tier magical core is here, along with that medicinal herb."

Xiao Ting's trip to the Monster Mountain Range was very fruitful. Whether it was good luck or something else, Xiao Ting felt that everything was going smoothly after breaking through to the Dou Huang realm.

Xiao Ting took out another cyan sixth-order magic core, along with a strange medicinal herb. This herb was blood red and resembled ginseng in shape.

"Wow! This is the Thousand-Year Blood Ginseng King! It's one of the main ingredients for refining the seventh-grade mid-level pill, the Zongyuan Pill. Grandpa, you're incredibly lucky, aren't you? I've been in the Black Corner Region for so long, and I haven't collected many of these materials."

Xiao Li was speechless. What kind of luck was this? He had to exchange these medicinal herbs for pills, but his grandfather had basically gotten them for free, and even got a sixth-order magic core as a bonus.

"Oh? These are actually medicinal herbs for refining seventh-grade pills. Hehe, this old man's luck is truly remarkable." Xiao Ting stroked his beard and laughed.

"It's not just good, it's absolutely amazing!" Xiao Li was speechless. He thought he was very lucky, but he didn't expect someone to be even luckier than him.

"By the way, little brother, you've come back just in time. The Gama Empire and the Izumo Empire will soon be holding a tournament of strong warriors. At that time, the strong warriors of our Gama Empire will gather to have a life-or-death duel with the strong warriors of the Izumo Empire."

Xiao Lin suddenly spoke up, saying that he had received a message from the royal family of the Jia Ma Empire some time ago, stating that the Xiao family, as one of the four major families of the Jia Ma Empire, needed to participate in the war.

"Oh? A tournament of powerful figures from the Izumo Empire? What are the specifics?" Xiao Li inquired.

"I know this. I participated in it twenty years ago when I had just entered the Dou Wang realm. The Strongest Tournament is a kind of arena competition held by the two great empires, except that this competition is a matter of life and death."

The side with more powerful individuals can annex enemy territories, thus increasing its own interests. This is a form of plunder between large-scale powers, where sects, families, and even royalty all vie for benefits. However, the royal family of the Gama Empire... well, let's just say they're not that powerful.

Xiao Ting smiled without saying a word, because he had witnessed the dealings of the Jia Ma Empire's royal family before. What did Yun Shan gain after killing a Dou Huang powerhouse?

Jia Xingtian of the Jia Ma royal family, after scheming and plotting, felt that everyone wanted to take over his Jia Ma Empire. He sent troops to garrison at the foot of Yunlan Mountain. Only Yunshan had a good temper. Yunshan knew that internal strife was meaningless, so he turned a blind eye.

Instead of being ruthless, Jia Xingtian became even more cunning, which led to the birth of a Dou Huang in the Xiao family. Xiao Ting then went into hiding. Given Jia Xingtian's nature, with a Dou Huang in the Xiao family, he would definitely cause trouble for them.

"Lin'er, this time you and Li'er can handle it. I won't go. I am the backbone of the family. Li'er, remember, if you reveal your strength by taking action, then you should also reveal your identity as an alchemist."

Heh heh, a sixth-grade alchemist. These old guys are too busy trying to curry favor with him. No matter how many ideas Jia Xingtian has, he won't dare to put them into practice. He doesn't have the guts to offend a sixth-grade alchemist.

"Hehe, the reason why Elder Wang's status is so extraordinary is because he is the only sixth-grade high-level alchemist in the empire; no one dares to offend him."

Xiao Ting reminded him, after all, he knew all too well what kind of people they were.

"Understood, Grandpa. Please take the Royal Extreme Pill as soon as possible these days to improve your strength. I'll go see my teacher first, and then go collect some medicinal herbs. Oh, by the way, I have a few Azure Origin Pills here to assist your cultivation."

Xiao Li gave Xiao Ting a few more Qingyuan Pills to help him.

"Brother, here are your pills too. Let me know in advance when you participate in the tournament so I can make some preparations." Xiao Li also gave Xiao Lin pills suitable for Dou Wang cultivation.

"Ah."

After giving the pills, Xiao Li left, unfurling a pair of transparent battle qi wings on his back, and then flew into the distance.

Alchemist Guild.

Xiao Li flew straight to the top floor to find Old Wang.

At this moment, Old Wang was leisurely lying on a recliner, enjoying the sunlight.

"teacher."

"Hmm?" Old Wang opened his sleepy eyes and saw that familiar figure: "Oh? Li'er is back."

"Teacher, did I disturb you?" Xiao Li sat down on the ground next to Old Wang.

"Hehe, no, I just finished refining a pill and got sleepy. I wanted to take a short nap." Old Wang sat up and stretched his body.

"Hmm? Your cultivation level? I remember you were a one-star Dou Wang before? How come you've reached eight-star Dou Wang in just one year? What's going on?"

Logically speaking, your cultivation level should be close to that of a five-star Dou Wang, right?

Old Wang was puzzled as to why Xiao Li's cultivation had improved so much.

"Here's what happened: I subdued the sub-flame of the Fallen Heart Flame, and during the process of absorbing the strange flame, I refined the medicinal power accumulated in my body, which enabled me to reach the level of an eight-star Dou Wang."

Xiao Li told Elder Wang about what had happened when he absorbed the strange fire.

"I see. I didn't expect that the Fallen Heart Flame would actually reach the Dou Zong level. Fortunately, Dean Mang Tianchi stopped you. Now you can focus on cultivating the strange fire in your hand. It probably won't be long before the Fallen Heart Flame becomes a true strange fire."

Old Master Wang said with a smile that he was very pleased with his disciple's growth.

"Li'er, your alchemy skills must have improved a lot by now. You must have surpassed your master by now, right?" Old Wang had already guessed what was going on.

Because Old Wang had just sensed that Xiao Li's soul power was above his own.

"Well, now my alchemy skills can barely be considered as those of a peak sixth-grade alchemist. I successfully refined two Breakthrough Pills at Canaan Academy and was very lucky to trigger the Pill Soul Realm twice."

Xiao Li said with a hint of pride.

Master Wang stroked his beard and smiled. His disciple had surpassed him, and nothing was more meaningful than a disciple surpassing his teacher.

"Come, Li'er, refine a pill and let your teacher observe," Old Wang said with a smile, holding Xiao Li's hand.

"no problem."

Regarding the female lead, Yun Yun and Zi Yan's status as female leads is a foregone conclusion, without a doubt. Medusa's role is pending. Well, I need to consider a suitable plot point for her. If there isn't one, then she'll just stay in the normal storyline. After all, I pay relatively more attention to age-related issues. Yun Yun, Medusa, Zi Yan, and Xiao Li are all at the right age. But characters like Qing Lin and Xiao Yi Xian are not suitable; I don't like the "father figure" boyfriend trope.

As for Xiao Yan, Gu Xun'er is locked in. Regarding those who think Xiao Yan is building a harem, do they even understand the fun of watching the protagonist's backyard go on fire?

To add some warmth and excitement to Xiao Yan's otherwise mundane fighting life.

Then I plan to pair Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian together, because it's a bit of a letdown, and this book doesn't intend to make Xiao Yi Xian the female lead, so I'll just make up for that regret this way.

Chapter 46 Heading to the Yunlan Sect

Xiao Li discussed alchemy with Elder Wang for several days. Elder Wang exceptionally granted Xiao Li the title of Honorary Elder of the Alchemist Guild, which could be considered as building momentum for Xiao Li.

After all, although the Gama Empire is a small and barren place with few strong people, its people are cunning and treacherous, and there are too many backstabbing incidents.

Elder Wang himself is incredibly powerful. Apart from Jia Xingtian and Yunshan, no one can rival him. All the families are wary of Elder Wang's strength. Under Elder Wang's leadership, the Alchemist Guild, the Royal Family, and the Yunlan Sect are the three transcendent powers of the Jia Ma Empire.

Now that Xiao Li has returned after completing his studies, it will only be a year or two before he becomes a Dou Huang. Those with complicated thoughts will also put away their dirty hearts.

After refining a batch of pills, Xiao Li looked at the magnificent mountain range outside the capital, which was Yunlan Mountain.

"What? Missing that girl? If you do, go see her. That girl has worked quite hard these past two years, and Old Man Yunshan promised me many things, so I've refined quite a few pills for her."

If you go to see her now, you'll be amazed by her growth—whether it's her cultivation level or anything else.

As Old Wang spoke, his mouth stretched almost to his ears in a wide grin.

"Teacher, I'll be right back," Xiao Li said with a silly grin, scratching his cheek.

"Get out of here, there's no bed for you here," Old Wang said with a laugh.

"Dele."

A pair of transparent wings appeared on Xiao Li's back, and then he flew towards Yunlan Mountain.

"He's still just a young boy after all. Sigh~ I wonder how she is doing."

. . . . . .

Yunlan Mountain

This mountain is steep, with cliffs on three sides and only one road leading to the summit. It is a dangerous place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Moreover, the Yunlan Sect disciples patrol the entire mountain, making the whole mountain range look like a small fortress.

"It's windy everywhere here. Cultivating wind-attribute battle qi here is twice as effective. It seems that the founder of Yunlan Sect knew how to choose a place."

As Xiao Li sensed his surroundings, he preferred the ethereal and otherworldly atmosphere of the Yunlan Sect to the bustling capital.

"Who is this! A Battle Qi Wing! A Battle King level expert!"

Xiao Li made no attempt to conceal himself; he came openly and honestly.

The disciples patrolling the Yunlan Sect also noticed that the other party had transformed into wings of Dou Qi, making him a Dou Wang level expert. A leader with some sense stepped forward and clasped his hands in greeting to Xiao Li.

"Sir, your unauthorized flight over Yunlan Mountain will cause some unnecessary trouble. Please come down first. Are you here to visit a friend or to exchange skills? We can lead the way."

The leader spoke reasonably well, without the arrogance of those arrogant bastards. Xiao Li felt that this was indeed a soldier trained by Yunshan, and his first impression was not bad.

"Visiting a friend." Xiao Li took the jade pendant that Yun Yun had given her in her hand.

"Sir, could you please come down first? You're flying so high, I can't see the token clearly."

. . . . . .