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**
The four returned to the flat boulder.
Xian'er looked up into the sky. About ten meters above her head, the space that appeared normal to the naked eye was actually faintly distorting and rippling in her vision.
"With this spatial barrier in place, even if someone or a magic beast flies by overhead, unless they're a peak Nine-Star Dou Zong or a Dou Zun, it would be nearly impossible for them to notice anything amiss," Xian'er murmured softly.
"Mistress, don't worry," Ah Da said with confidence, "This spatial barrier is far superior to the one inside Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy. Even if a low-tier Dou Zun came here, without careful probing, they wouldn't detect this place."
"Is that so?" Xian'er nodded slightly.
Indeed, this small spatial formation, covering only a few kilometers, had been created through the combined full effort of the four of them. Its strength and concealment were beyond question.
Especially since they had the help of Du Jiao, a seasoned Dou Zong, and Ah Da, who was once a peak Nine-Star Dou Zun.
Their mastery of spatial power far exceeded that of Xian'er and Qing Lin, who were still novices in this field.
Soon after, the four sat down once more to recover their energy.
——
Within the sealed spatial barrier—
The violent energy fluctuations from the volcano were completely hidden.
Yet, the enormous multicolored energy vortex in the sky did not disappear with time. On the contrary, as more time passed, it only became denser and more intense.
Inside the cave, Wei Yang was still in the midst of transformation, continuously absorbing vast amounts of energy from the vortex.
Even the magma beneath the crater had begun to cool on the surface, forming a thin layer of hardened lava.
Time passed quietly and steadily.
Unknowingly, another half a month had gone by.
Still, there was no sign of Wei Yang leaving seclusion.
Xian'er and the others were in no rush. They simply waited patiently and guarded the area.
When another half a month passed, it marked one full month since Wei Yang began his breakthrough.
Including his prior closed-door cultivation, it had now been a month and a half in total.
Finally, on this day—
Change came.
The massive, multicolored energy vortex in mid-air, which spanned more than ten meters in diameter, suddenly ceased its frenzied absorption of elemental energy.
Its size gradually shrank.
Until—pop!—it collapsed and vanished completely.
On the flat boulder, all four opened their eyes.
Seeing this, they all smiled.
When they focused on the direction of Wei Yang's cave, they found that the intense energy fluctuations there had also completely settled.
But very soon—
BOOM!
A terrifying pressure erupted from within the cave, like a slumbering dragon awakening.
Vast and boundless, the overwhelming aura surged forth and swept across the entire space within the barrier.
It was—undeniably—the aura of a true Dou Zong!
"Young Master did it!"
"Brother Yang!"
Xian'er and Qing Lin both stood up in joy, radiant smiles blossoming on their faces.
"Congratulations, Mistress. Master has successfully advanced to Dou Zong!" Ah Da added cheerfully, offering his congratulations with perfect timing.
"U-Uh… C-Congratulations… Mistress… Master…" Du Jiao stuttered, fumbling with his words, but finally managed to squeeze out a congratulatory line.
"Mhm, mhm." Xian'er nodded repeatedly with a grin.
Only Qing Lin seemed a little annoyed. She gave Du Jiao a glare and softly scolded, "Du Jiao, you're so dumb. It's been so long, and you still can't speak properly."
"..." Du Jiao lowered his head awkwardly.
BOOM!
Hisss~
Down below, the thin layer of solidified lava suddenly cracked open, and two enormous beasts burst out from within.
It was Big Eye and Xiao Hong. Trembling slightly from the powerful pressure that had just erupted, they nonetheless let out joyful hisses, clearly celebrating Wei Yang's success.
With a smile befitting the head mistress, Xian'er turned her delicate palm and took out several small jade bottles. One bottle of pills was handed to each of the two snakes—Big Eye and Xiao Hong—and even Du Jiao and Ah Da received a share.
It was like distributing wedding candies—everyone received a reward.
This festive scene was even more joyful and ceremonial than when she herself had broken through to Dou Zong.
Not long after, the surging aura gradually retracted.
The cave fell silent once more.
However, Wei Yang still showed no sign of coming out.
Instead, as his aura subsided, he seemed to enter a new state of calm and meditation.
Xian'er and the others weren't concerned.
They knew—Wei Yang was now consolidating his realm.
Time slipped by like sand between fingers.
Three days later.
Inside the dimly lit cave—
A few moonstones embedded in the walls emitted a soft glow, gently illuminating the space without being too harsh or too dark.
In the center of the cave, atop a smooth bluestone platform, a black-clad figure sat quietly in meditation.
The aura emanating from his body was calm and restrained, with no signs of instability.
Then—
Wei Yang, who had been sitting with eyes closed, suddenly opened them.
In that instant, it was as if lightning flickered across the void within the cave—a blinding light flashed by with terrifying intensity.
Within his pitch-black pupils, faint black flames danced and flickered.
Only after a moment did everything gradually settle down.
Huu~
Wei Yang exhaled a long breath.
A faint, gray-black stream of air shot out like an arrow, landing squarely on the stone wall across from him.
Ssssss—
The rock instantly began to hiss with the sound of corrosion. In the blink of an eye, it had been eaten away into a deep concave hole.
These were the impurities—residual toxins from the volcanic fire-attribute energy and other byproducts absorbed during cultivation—that had now been purged from his body.
"Dou Zong, huh..." Wei Yang murmured, slowly clenching his fist, a distant look in his eyes.
In the blink of an eye, nearly twenty years had passed since he came to this world.
From a six-year-old boy with no way to protect himself, he had become a true Dou Zong expert.
Dou Zong.
This level… was already considered part of the true upper echelon of the Dou Qi Continent.
Wherever one went, a Dou Zong was a figure qualified to establish a sect or be revered as a patriarch.
"Time flows like water… In just a flash, it's been over eighteen years… almost twenty," Wei Yang sighed.
He slowly stood up and took a step forward.
Whoosh—
His body left behind a straight trail of dense afterimages, and the real him appeared in a blink before the sealed stone door.
With just a thought—
The heavy stone door slowly opened under the guidance of an invisible force.
Blinding sunlight streamed through the widening gap in beams and shafts, causing Wei Yang to squint slightly.
As the stone door fully opened, his figure flashed once more and disappeared on the spot.
Only then did the straight line of residual shadows stretching from the bluestone platform to the stone gate slowly begin to dissipate.
——
Buzz—
Above the volcano, the space suddenly twisted.
Then—
Swish!
Wei Yang, dressed in a black robe embroidered with golden patterns and wearing a jade circlet to hold back his hair, stepped out calmly into the sky, hands clasped behind his back.
He hovered there in midair, standing as though supported by invisible steps beneath his feet.
A light breeze stirred, lifting the hem of his robe slightly and causing the jet-black hair that reached his waist to sway gently behind him.
Wei Yang tilted his head upward, closed his eyes, and let the warm sunlight fall across his face.
He took a deep breath.
A smile crept onto his lips—then widened.
He slowly opened his arms wide, as though embracing the world itself.
"Dou Zong… so this is what it feels like to be a Dou Zong… It's different. Completely different. It's… marvelous." Wei Yang whispered softly.
He could feel it—That surging Dou Qi, roaring through his meridians like a mighty river.
A sensation of unprecedented power rose in his heart.
Unless one truly reached this realm, they could never grasp the essence or power of this level.
Suddenly opening his eyes, Wei Yang extended a hand forward and made what seemed like a casual grab at the air.
Buzz—
The originally invisible space ahead of him rippled like the surface of water, waves spreading outward visibly to the naked eye.
Space—formless, intangible, without shape or substance—was both void and presence. It could contain everything, and yet itself was considered "nothing."
Nothingness—because only what is "nothing" can carry all that is something.
But now, in Wei Yang's eyes, space was no longer abstract or empty—it had become real, almost tangible.
To him, the void was no longer an idea. It was a reality, something that could be sensed.
With his hand, he could stir the formless air itself, creating visible ripples in what once was intangible.
This was the mysterious power of space.
And it was a power… that only those who had stepped into the Dou Zong realm could begin to touch!
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