Chapter 282: Powering Up (In Progress)
Since it was a natural breakthrough, Xiao Yuan didn't need much time. That very evening, he completed his advancement—he was now a three-star Dou Zong.
If Yun Shan were still alive to witness how quickly Xiao Yuan had gone from peak Dou Wang to Dou Zong, one could only imagine the expression on his face.
Unfortunately, his soul had been destroyed by Protector Wu. A total obliteration—if this were a xianxia world, he'd be classified as "soul scattered, body shattered," with no chance of reincarnation.
As for his corpse, Xiao Yuan didn't even find it worth using anymore.
A mere three-star Dou Zong, and one whose level had been artificially boosted through Hall of Souls' secret arts? Xiao Yuan could crush someone like that in his sleep.
Of course, this wasn't something to say in front of Yun Yun—just a thought best kept to himself.
Speaking of that noble beauty, a smile surfaced on Xiao Yuan's lips.
He wondered how Yun Yun, Xiao Yi Xian, and Zi Yan were doing now.
He wasn't too worried about Xiao Yan. With their teacher by his side, things should be fine.
They were brothers forged in battle. Their strength spoke for itself.
Hopefully, Little Doctor wouldn't get targeted by Ice River Valley—Xiao Yuan still couldn't handle a Dou Venerate-level enemy yet.
Still, after slaughtering so many from the Northern Pavilion, would the Thunder Venerate show up personally to deal with him?
The thought made Xiao Yuan slightly anxious.
With his current strength, he would stand no chance against the Thunder Venerate.
But if Thunder Venerate really did show up, it would be a complete loss of face.
After all, Xiao Yuan was just a junior, while the Venerate was a long-established powerhouse—leader of Wind Lightning Pavilion and one of the Four Great Pavilions, a true Dou Venerate.
That said, Xiao Yuan wasn't without trump cards.
He just didn't want to use them too soon.
Now that Heaven Thunder Step and Demon Thunder Physique had both been mastered, his self-preservation ability had improved dramatically. With Venerable Tian Huo's help, even the Thunder Venerate might not be able to capture him.
Of course, while he might escape, the Han Clan couldn't.
The brutal way he annihilated the Wind Lightning Pavilion's people had been precisely for the sake of the Han Clan.
It was his woman's family—he couldn't ignore them in times of danger. That made them his weakness.
Sure, the Han Clan had a Dou Zong patriarch and wasn't easy prey for just anyone.
But forces like the Wind Lightning Pavilion didn't view them as a threat at all.
That's why Xiao Yuan had been so ruthless in killing every last one of the Pavilion's men.
The message was clear: anyone who targeted the Han Clan would die.
After killing the elders of Wind, Thunder, Lightning, and Cloud, Xiao Yuan's deterrent power was now on par with peak Dou Zong experts. Unless someone was a Dou Venerate or stronger, they'd think twice before laying a hand on the Han Clan.
Still, he was far from strong enough.
After contemplating the risks, Xiao Yuan reached out and summoned dozens of storage rings from the table nearby. Each ring had its own unique design, and the pile of them before him would surely trigger chaos if placed in the Black-Corner Region.
Even Xiao Yuan, with all his composure, felt his heartbeat quicken at the sight.
The owners of these rings were at least Dou Wangs, all from Wind Lightning Pavilion. Naturally, their possessions were abundant.
With a thought, a tide of soul force surged forward and flooded the rings like a crashing wave.
Using his powerful soul, Xiao Yuan quickly erased all the spiritual imprints.
He then invaded the rings belonging to the three Dou Zong elders first. Moments later, three silver scrolls appeared, glowing in his palm.
"As expected... on those old bastards."
These scrolls matched the one he'd gotten from Shen Yun exactly—even the bloodline markings were identical. Clearly, they were part of the legendary Three Thousand Lightning Illusions. The only question was—now that he had four scrolls, was it complete?
Excited, Xiao Yuan pulled out Shen Yun's scroll and opened all four at once.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
As they unfurled, silver light blazed, followed by deafening thunder. Four thick bolts of lightning shot out and slammed into Xiao Yuan's chest, launching him like a cannonball into the wall, cracks spiderwebbing across the stone.
"Ugh!"
Caught off guard, Xiao Yuan grunted. He rubbed his chest and pried himself off the wall.
Thanks to Demon Thunder Physique, he was unharmed.
Patting the dust off, he sneered, "Wind Lightning Pavilion... really plays dirty."
The scrolls, now spent of their lightning strike, hovered in mid-air. Lightning danced across their surface, and a line of glowing script slowly appeared:
Three Thousand Lightning Illusions—Wind Lightning Pavilion's supreme treasure. Said to be passed down from ancient times. High Earth-Tier. When mastered, it creates a Lightning Clone with power equal to the user. As long as the real body lives, the clone is indestructible. Its miraculous effects are described in one phrase: comparable to Heaven-Tier!
Xiao Yuan's lips curled into a satisfied smile.
An indestructible clone, equal in strength to the original—that was an unmatched asset in combat.
Below the main text, a fainter line of notes appeared, clearly written by others:
"Though formidable, Three Thousand Lightning Illusions is extremely difficult to cultivate. It requires complete mastery of the Three Thousand Thunder Movement first. In all these years, few in the Pavilion have ever succeeded. I've studied it for decades to no avail—it seems this lifetime won't be enough."
Now it made sense—none of the four elders had used the technique. They'd failed to master it.
Which only made Xiao Yuan more eager to try.
Eyes full of determination, he summoned all four scrolls into his hand. He closed his eyes and sent his soul into them.
He appeared in a world of lightning. Thunderstorms raged endlessly, bolts crashing down from the heavens like waterfalls.
The moment his soul entered, the lightning sensed him—countless bolts whipped across the sky, blinding and violent.
But Xiao Yuan remained calm. He knew this wasn't real lightning, just soul remnants embedded in the scroll.
"Disperse!"
With a tap of his finger, his soul pulsed out in waves, erasing the lightning. The sky cleared, the bolts turning into silver light particles that slowly faded.
Now able to observe the space clearly, he saw only one thing below—a massive lake of silver lightning. Bolts snaked through its surface like silver serpents.
It was a lightning pool. And the only thing present in this entire space.
There was no sign of any cultivation method for Three Thousand Lightning Illusions.
Frowning, Xiao Yuan scanned the entire space with his soul. He focused on the lake, then tapped it with another pulse of soul force.
The lightning on the lake dispersed. Its surface turned mirror-clear.
Moments later, ripples spread—and lines of lightning script emerged.
From above, Xiao Yuan read them easily. His eyes sparkled with joy as he memorized the content.
It took about ten minutes to finish. But after piecing the words together in his mind, he frowned again.
It was indeed the cultivation method. But the order was chaotic, disjointed.
Thankfully, he'd read all four scrolls simultaneously using split soul force. Now, he began organizing the lightning script within his mind.
A while later, he opened his eyes, brow still furrowed.
Despite merging all four scrolls, something was missing. He couldn't decipher the training method yet.
He had hoped his talent would let him comprehend it directly.
But it was too complex to unravel in such a short time.
It looked like if Fei Tian didn't come after him first, he'd have to seek him out.
If he wiped out the entire Northern Pavilion, wouldn't the Thunder Venerate have to respond?
Well, if it came to that, he could always "borrow the tiger's skin" and invoke the Wind Venerate.
It was a move he hadn't revealed before.
Back when traveling to Jia Nan Academy with Xiao Yan, their teacher had given him a wind-attribute cultivation technique and Dou Technique once used by the Wind Venerate.
He'd never used the accompanying Dou Technique before. It had come from a ruined ancient estate the old man had explored with the Wind Venerate.
Only someone close to the Wind Venerate—like a disciple—might possess it.
If Xiao Yuan used it, people might recognize it. The Wind Venerate might hear about it. That could bring both help and trouble.
After all, Soul Hall had been looking for their teacher for years.
But now, Xiao Yuan feared no Soul Hall protector. Unless one of their Elders personally arrived, his life wouldn't be threatened.
This was the perfect time to catch the Wind Venerate's attention.
The Thunder Venerate might be domineering, but killing the Wind Venerate's disciple? He wouldn't dare.
And if worst came to worst—Xiao Yuan wouldn't mind teaching him a lesson in three years.
Three years. That's all he needed.
Suppressing his thoughts, Xiao Yuan waved a hand. The three corpses floated before him.
He scanned the many rings again, picking out necessary materials.
As expected, there were enough resources to forge three new puppets.
With previous experience, the process went faster. After seven days, three Earth-grade puppets were completed.
Along with Shen Yun, he now had all four: Wind, Thunder, Lightning, and Cloud.
Together, Xiao Yuan estimated they could rival even the Earth Demon Old Ghost.
But against a peak Dou Zong? Probably not enough.
He waved them back into storage, rested briefly, and took out the Black Demon Cauldron.
He'd been using his teacher's cauldron for so long that the old man eventually let him keep it.
In his soul state, Yao Lao didn't need many pills beyond tier six. Anything higher—tier seven or eight—would consume his soul force too quickly.
Xiao Yan had the Myriad Beast Cauldron from Han Feng, so he didn't need this one.
Luckily. Otherwise, Xiao Yuan wouldn't be able to attempt tier-seven pills.
Feeling fortunate, Xiao Yuan waved his hand again and pulled a large number of ingredients from his many rings.
He needed to make a few tier-six pills first—to warm up before attempting tier-seven.
First up: Soul Cleansing Pill.
A peak-tier-six pill that could purge foreign soul energy and nourish the soul. Ingredients: Purifying Herb, Icefire Soul Fruit, Water Spirit Lotus Seed...
Recalling the formula, Xiao Yuan grew solemn.
In terms of difficulty, it rivaled the Breaking Sect Pill.
Though he hadn't used Tian Huo's strength often, he'd sensed residual soul marks within himself.
With a breakthrough to tier-seven on the line, he couldn't afford carelessness. All risks had to be removed.
Hu...
Xiao Yuan exhaled deeply, calmed his mind, and began refining the Soul Cleansing Pill.
(END CHAPTER)
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