Chapter 248: Xiao Yan: Is Third Brother Breaking Through to Dou Zong?
As the morning sunlight poured into the room, Xiao Yan slowly opened his eyes. After a night of cultivation, he was at his peak. Dou Qi surged through his body like a torrential flood, and power coursed through his limbs and bones—he felt like with a single movement, he could tear everything before him to pieces.
Jumping down from the bed, he walked out of the room and knocked on his third brother's door.
Xiao Yixian opened it. Her vigilant look softened once she saw Xiao Yan.
"Sister-in-law, I'm planning to refine some pills. How much longer will Third Brother be in seclusion?"
"Probably three to four more days," Xiao Yixian replied, slightly uncertain.
"Three or four days? Got it. You can rest."
Xiao Yan nodded and returned to his room.
Xiao Yixian gave a light nod as well and walked back inside. She glanced at Xiao Yuan, whose body emitted an increasingly powerful energy fluctuation, then casually pulled out a bag of poison from her ring and poured it into her mouth.
Slightly numbing. Not bad.
It was a poison potent enough to kill a Dou Spirit, but to her, it earned no more than a bland remark.
She didn't touch the ones strong enough to kill Dou Emperors—those would cause discomfort, and she wouldn't be able to guard Xiao Yuan properly.
Meanwhile, in his room, Xiao Yan took out the Myriad Beast Cauldron.
"Teacher, I'll probably need your help once the pill is ready."
"Relax," Yao Lao's voice replied in his mind. "I'll keep watch. But if I intervene, the Soul Hall might detect me, so I'll rely on your strength as much as possible."
"Then I won't disappoint!" Xiao Yan smiled, flicking his fingers. The cauldron appeared and thudded against the ground with a low hum.
He brought out ten jade boxes, each holding rare and potent ingredients. These had taken much time and effort to gather—none inferior to what he had bought from Qianyao Pavilion.
This time, Xiao Yan intended to refine the Breaking Sect Pill. Among sixth-tier pills, it was high-grade. While it didn't raise cultivation directly, it gave Dou Emperors a 10% increased success rate in breaking through to Dou Zong. More importantly, even if the breakthrough failed, their cultivation would remain stable—no regression.
Everyone knew: failing a Dou Zong breakthrough could lead to serious backlash—even a drop in level. That fear alone terrified many Dou Emperors.
Thus, the Breaking Sect Pill had immense value.
As his gaze swept over the jade boxes, Xiao Yan inhaled deeply, calmed his mind, then opened his eyes—blue flame flickering in his pupils.
Fwoosh!
A thread of blue flame leapt from his fingers into the cauldron, then expanded into a fierce blaze.
The crimson hue of the Myriad Beast Cauldron flared brilliantly.
Xiao Yan began refining, his practiced hands displaying fluid skill. Yao Lao nodded in approval. Both of his disciples had developed distinct refining styles, already reaching master-level skill in the Jia Ma Empire—and even in Central Plains, they'd be considered prodigies.
Elsewhere, Xiao Yuan was wrapped in cyan-brown flames.
Strangely, the flames didn't burn the room—they appeared illusory. But Xiao Yixian sensed otherwise. They were cold outside, hot within—a manifestation of Xiao Yuan's peak control.
Inside, his body burned like a furnace as he refined Xie Bi Yan's immense Dou Qi. It was quickly converted into his own power, aided by his five Qi vortexes and refined through his Heavenly Flame.
In less than a day, half of the energy was absorbed.
His aura, though suppressed, had already deepened greatly. When Xiao Yixian told Xiao Yan it would take three or four days, she knew the truth: he was almost ready.
As Xiao Yuan treated himself like a cauldron and refined Dou Qi like ingredients, even his body was being tempered by the flame. Slowly, it was strengthening—a discovery that surprised him.
In future training, he might use this technique again: it tempered his Qi, body, and fire control—three birds with one stone!
Xiao Yixian sat quietly, watching him, eyes filled with warmth.
It's good to be with you.
She bit into a violet berry.
Purple Phantom Poison Fruit—lethal to Dou Kings. To her? A tasty treat. Sweet, tart, and no bitter aftertaste.
Meanwhile, outside, unrest was brewing.
The next day, a gang of tattooed thugs gathered outside the inn. On their arms: wolf tattoos—the same seen on those men Xiao Yuan and Xiao Yixian had killed days ago at the city gate.
People whispered:
"Hey, those are the crazy Quelang Gang."
"That's their leader Kui Sha! I heard he killed a Dou Emperor not long ago."
"But didn't two women wipe the floor with them earlier? They must be looking for revenge."
"Heh, one of them even killed that six-star Dou Emperor, Qi Shan! And Black Emperor Sect didn't dare say a word..."
Under watchful eyes, the gang reached the inn.
But before they could act, a gray-violet beam blasted from inside.
Boom!
Kui Sha, Dou Emperor—dead.
"Thousand Illusion Poison Spring!"
Xiao Yixian's voice echoed coldly. The poison water from Kui Sha's corpse suddenly gurgled, erupted like a spring, and engulfed the entire gang—dissolving them into blood.
Gasp!
Spectators flinched in terror.
"If you want to die, keep coming."
Xiao Yixian waved a hand, closed the door, and said no more.
No one dared provoke her now.
Even the Black Emperor Sect had done nothing after Qi Shan's death—these fools were doomed.
But Xiao Yixian frowned.
That gang... might have just been testing the waters.
She glanced back at Xiao Yuan.
Though calm on the outside, she sensed his power already rivaled a Dou Zong.
And Xiao Yan? After two failures, he was now in the final step of refining the Breaking Sect Pill—warming the pill embryo.
Half an hour later, the room trembled violently.
Xiao Yixian's eyes flickered.
She turned toward Xiao Yan's room—a massive energy wave was forming.
Boom!
Suddenly, a beam of light shot skyward from his room, piercing the roof and streaking into the sky.
Even Xiao Yixian's expression changed.
"What kind of pill is he making? That much commotion? This will shake the entire city!"
She flashed outside, ready to deter greedy eyes.
Inside, Xiao Yan frowned slightly, sensing her power. "Sister-in-law is a six-star Dou Emperor?"
"Don't worry," Yao Lao's voice said, chuckling. "I was going to suppress the fluctuation—but your third brother has awakened."
"So soon?"
"He's been ready. He just wasn't satisfied with the results and kept at it."
"Wait... could he be about to break through to Dou Zong?!"
"Ha! In your dreams," Yao Lao laughed. "His cultivation technique requires five times the Dou Qi of a normal cultivator. Two days isn't enough."
"Then...?"
"You'll see."
Outside, just as Xiao Yixian feared, the entire city took notice.
Dozens of figures appeared on nearby rooftops and treetops within minutes, eyes locked onto the light pillar rising from the inn.
(END CHAPTER)
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