"This…" Xiao Ting was too shocked to speak.
He had just luckily achieved a Breakthrough to Dou Huang, and with the power of an Earth Rank Intermediate Cultivation Technique, his arduous Cultivation during this period had allowed him to reach the Peak of One-star Dou Huang, and he would soon be able to Breakthrough to Two-star Dou Huang.
As a result, his grandson brought him a Huangji Pill, and it was even a top-grade Huangji Pill!
His eldest grandson, Xiao Lin, had previously told him that Xiao Li had given him a Dou Ling Pill, which he had refined himself.
How long had it been since then? And he could already refine a Huangji Pill?
"Don't worry, Grandpa, this isn't something I owe my teacher; I refined it myself, look."
Xiao Li slightly raised his right hand, and a transparent flame instantly appeared on it.
"Heavenly Flame?"
Xiao Lin and Xiao Ting exclaimed in shock; neither of them had expected Xiao Li to have obtained a Heavenly Flame.
"Exactly, my Alchemy has 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. Oh, right, Li'er, after Grandpa's Breakthrough to Dou Huang, he went deep into the Magical Beast Mountain Range and found some good things—two excellent Medicinal Materials. Take a look."
Xiao Ting suddenly remembered that after his Breakthrough, he wanted to test the strength of a Dou Huang, so he went deep into the Magical Beast Mountain Range and happened to encounter two Rank 5 Demonic Beasts fighting over a Medicinal Material.
Xiao Ting took out a wooden box and opened it.
"Eight-ridged Demonic Needle Fruit! Medicinal Material for refining a Spirit Pill, a good item indeed." Xiao Li hadn't expected his Grandpa to obtain this kind of Medicinal Material.
"There's more. I discovered a severely injured Rank 6 Demonic Beast; it seemed to be guarding something, so I killed it directly. Its Rank 6 Demonic Core is here, along with that Medicinal Material."
Xiao Ting had a bountiful harvest from his trip to the Magical Beast Mountain Range. He didn't know if it was good luck or something else, but Xiao Ting felt that after his Breakthrough to Dou Huang, everything went smoothly.
Xiao Ting once again took out a green Rank 6 Demonic Core, along with a strange Medicinal Material. This Medicinal Material was entirely blood-red and resembled ginseng in shape.
"Holy moly! This is a Thousand-Year Blood Ginseng King! One of the main Materials for refining a Rank 7 Intermediate Elixir, the zong yuan pill. Grandpa, aren't you incredibly lucky? I stayed in the Black-Corner Region for so long and didn't collect many Materials like this."
Xiao Li was speechless. What kind of luck was this? He had to exchange Elixirs for the Medicinal Materials he obtained, but his Grandpa essentially picked them up for free, plus a Rank 6 Demonic Core as a bonus.
"Oh? It's Medicinal Material for refining a Rank 7 Pill. Haha, this old man's luck is indeed quite good." Xiao Ting stroked his beard and laughed.
"It's more than just good; it's incredibly good!" Xiao Li was a bit speechless. He considered himself very lucky, but he hadn't expected someone to be even luckier than him.
"Oh, right, little brother, you've returned at a good time. Soon, the Jia Ma Empire and the Izumo Empire will hold a gathering of powerful individuals. At that time, all the powerful individuals from our Jia Ma Empire will assemble to engage in a life-and-death competition with the powerful individuals from the Izumo Empire."
Xiao Lin suddenly spoke. Some time ago, he received news from the Jia Ma Empire's imperial Family that the Xiao Family, as one of the four great Families of the Jia Ma Empire, needed to participate.
"Oh? A gathering of powerful individuals with the Izumo Empire? What are the specifics?" Xiao Li inquired.
"This old man knows. I also participated twenty years ago, and at that time, I had just entered the Dou King realm. The gathering of powerful individuals is a type of arena competition organized by the two Empires, except this competition is a fight to the death.
Whichever side has more powerful and stronger individuals can allow their Empire to annex the enemy's territory, increasing their own interests. This is a form of plunder between large forces; Sects, Families, and the imperial Family all contend for benefits. However, the Jia Ma Empire's imperial Family, hehe."
Xiao Ting smiled but said nothing, because he had witnessed the Jia Ma Empire imperial Family's dealings back then. When Yun Shan killed a Dou Huang realm powerful individual, what did he get in return?
Jia Xingtian of the Gama imperial Family, constantly scheming, felt as if everyone was trying to usurp his Jia Ma Empire, and he even sent troops to guard at the foot of Yun Lan Mountain. It was only because Yun Shan had a good temper and knew that internal strife was meaningless that he turned a blind eye.
Jia Xingtian, however, became even more brazen. So when the Xiao Family produced a Dou Huang, Xiao Ting hid. Given Jia Xingtian's nature, he would definitely cause trouble for the Xiao Family with a Dou Huang, given his petty mind.
"Lin'er, this time, you and Li'er can handle it; this old man will not go. I will serve as the Family's foundation. Li'er, remember, if you expose your strength, then reveal your identity as an Alchemist.
Haha, a Sixth-Rank Alchemist—those old guys would be scrambling to curry favor. At that time, no matter how many ideas that old ghost Jia Xingtian has, he wouldn't dare to implement them. He doesn't have the guts to offend a Sixth-Rank Alchemist.
Haha, why is Elder Wang's status so transcendental? It's because he is the Empire's only Rank 6 Advanced Alchemist; no one dares to offend him."
Xiao Ting reminded him, as he was too familiar with the nature of certain people.
"Understood, Grandpa. Please take the Huangji Pill as soon as possible these days to increase your strength. I'll go see my teacher first, then go collect some Medicinal Materials. Oh, right, I also have a few Qing Yuan Pills here to assist your Cultivation."
Xiao Li once again gave Xiao Ting a few Qing Yuan Pills to help him.
"Big Brother, here are your Elixirs too. When the gathering takes place, let me know in advance so I can make some preparations." Xiao Li also gave Xiao Lin the Elixirs suitable for Dou King Cultivation.
"Mm."
After giving the Elixirs, Xiao Li left, unfolding a pair of transparent Dou Qi Wings on his back, and then flew into the distance.
Alchemist Guild.
Xiao Li flew directly to the top floor to find Elder Wang.
At this moment, Elder Wang was leisurely lying on a recliner, enjoying the sunlight.
"Teacher."
"Hmm?" Elder Wang opened his sleepy eyes and saw the familiar figure: "Oh? Li'er is back."
"Teacher, I hope I didn't disturb you?" Xiao Li came and sat on the ground beside Elder Wang.
"Haha, no, I just refined a Elixir and felt sleepy, wanting to take a short nap." Elder Wang sat up and stretched his body.
"Hmm? Your Cultivation? I remember you were a One-star Dou King before, right? How did you reach Eight-star Dou King after a year? What happened?
Logically speaking, your Cultivation reaching Five-star Dou King should have been about right, no?"
Elder Wang was a bit confused as to why Xiao Li's Cultivation had increased so much.
"It's like this: I subdued the sub-flame of the Fallen Heart Flame, and during the process of absorbing the Heavenly Flame, I refined the accumulated Medicinal Power within my body, which allowed my Cultivation to reach Eight-star Dou King."
Xiao Li told Elder Wang what happened when he absorbed the Heavenly Flame.
"So that's it. I didn't expect that Fallen Heart Flame to have reached the Dou Zong level. Fortunately, Dean Mang Tianchi stopped you. Now, you just need to focus on nurturing the Heavenly Flame in your hand, and in not too long, this Fallen Heart Flame will be a true Heavenly Flame."
Elder Wang said with a chuckle, very pleased with his Disciple's growth.
"Li'er, your Alchemy should have improved a lot now, right? I imagine it has already surpassed mine, hasn't it?" Elder Wang had already roughly guessed something.
Because Elder Wang had just sensed that Xiao Li's Soul Power was above his own.
"Mm, my current Alchemy can barely be considered that of a Rank 6 Peak Alchemist. I successfully refined two Break-Sect Pills at the Canaan Academy and was lucky enough to trigger the Dan Hun Realm twice."
Xiao Li said with some pride.
Elder Wang stroked his beard and smiled. His Disciple had already surpassed him, and there was nothing more meaningful than a Disciple surpassing his teacher.
"Come, Li'er, refine a Pill once, and let your teacher observe." Elder Wang said with a smile, pulling Xiao Li's hand.
"No problem."