"Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio? What is that?" Zhang Yuan asked knowingly.
"This old man is quite interested as well." Yao Chen stroked his illusory beard, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes.
On the Dou Qi Continent, if there was any organization related to souls, it would be his mortal enemy, the Hall of Souls.
The Northwestern Region was far from the Central Plains. This so-called Strange Tales might very well be some subordinate force of the Hall of Souls.
"I am not very familiar with it either." Xiao Yan habitually rubbed his nose and said, "I heard some storytellers and mercenaries mention it casually in taverns."
Zhang Yuan and Yao Chen could both tell that he was not telling the truth, but neither pressed the matter.
Zhang Yuan stared at Yao Chen as a dense layer of purple-silver aura surfaced over his body, slowly clinging to the surface of his black armor and forming a special translucent veil. Faint arcs of lightning flickered within it, giving off an extremely sharp and dangerous feeling.
"Cousin, you are already a Dou Shi!" Xiao Yan shouted in surprise.
His tone was filled with admiration and envy, yet there was not the slightest trace of jealousy.
The Dou Qi Veil was the signature ability of Dou Shi experts and also one of the most practical techniques. Once it covered the body, it granted comprehensive boosts to speed, defense, and attack.
Although Dou Shi was still considered a low level among cultivators on the continent, it was vastly stronger than the bottom-tier Dou Zhe.
Most importantly, Zhang Yuan had become a Dou Shi at only sixteen. He still had plenty of time to grow even stronger.
"He is not just a Dou Shi. He is a 9-Star Dou Shi, and he could break through to Da Dou Shi at any time." Yao Chen spoke slowly, appreciation evident in his eyes.
Even in Central Plains, within the Falling Star Pavilion he had founded with his old friend Feng Xian, Zhang Yuan would still be considered a top-tier genius.
More importantly, Yao Chen had watched Zhang Yuan grow up. His character was beyond reproach, not a white-eyed wolf by any measure.
"Hiss..." Xiao Yan sucked in a breath of cold air.
A 9-Star Dou Shi, on the verge of becoming a Da Dou Shi. He was already close to matching Xiao Zhan, the strongest expert of the Xiao Clan.
"Cousin, you cheated, right?" Xiao Yan said.
"Cheated how?" Zhang Yuan asked, feigning confusion.
He did indeed have a cheat. Deep within his soul existed a visualization diagram.
On that diagram stood a majestic being with a dragon's body and a human head. The first time Zhang Yuan saw it, enlightenment struck him instantly. He knew its identity was the Thunder God. According to the Classic of Mountains and Seas, it resided in Thunder Swamp, and a single strike of its abdomen would produce thunder.
He discovered the existence of this visualization diagram when he successfully broke through to Dou Zhe and awakened its first function.
Each day, he could contemplate it for one hour to strengthen his Spiritual Power.
When he broke through to Dou Shi, a second function awakened, a juvenile form capable of evolving into the Nine Dragon Lightning Flame.
The Dou Qi Continent also possessed the Nine Dragon Lightning Flame, ranked twelfth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking. It was silver in color. At its weakest, it took the form of a single dragon, while at its strongest, it manifested as nine dragons. It could devour lightning to grow stronger, and anyone who fully refined it could temper their body with lightning.
As for Zhang Yuan's version of the Nine Dragon Lightning Flame, it could continuously devour dragon qi, lightning power, and Heavenly Flames to grow, its ultimate potential unfathomable.
"It is nothing. I am just saying your talent is monstrous." Xiao Yan laughed.
"Average. Just luck." Zhang Yuan smiled faintly.
Just luck?
Xiao Yan felt that Zhang Yuan was clearly showing off, and he had proof.
But it did not matter. This line would belong to him in the future anyway.
"Who are you?" Zhang Yuan looked at Yao Chen and asked calmly, unruffled by praise or insult.
"A name is merely a title. This old man slept for too long and has already forgotten it." Yao Chen maintained his aloof demeanor and said lightly, "You may call me Yao Lao."
"Call you Yao Lao? In your dreams." Xiao Yan's expression turned fierce. "You swallowed the Dou Qi I refined all these years and turned me into a waste stuck at Dou Zhi Qi 3rd Stage. Old man, how do you explain that?"
Yao Chen felt a bit awkward.
At first, he had absorbed Xiao Yan's Dou Qi unconsciously.
But after his consciousness awakened, he did it deliberately. On one hand, it was to recover some of his strength. On the other hand, it was to temper and test Xiao Yan, to see if he could become a disciple capable of helping him revive.
Originally, he planned to reveal himself in the next few days and take Xiao Yan as his disciple. However, Nalan Yanran's arrival and Zhang Yuan's return completely disrupted his plans.
That said, compared to Xiao Yan, Zhang Yuan's temperament and character are actually better suited to his standards for taking in a disciple, if only his Dou Qi attribute were also fire.
"Back then, this old man had no choice. As compensation, I can help you return to Dou Zhi Qi 7th Stage within one year." Yao Chen said.
"Are you joking?" Xiao Yan was full of disbelief.
Cultivation foundations were extremely important. He had once been one of the two greatest geniuses of the Xiao Clan in a hundred years.
Back then, he started cultivating at four and took a full six years to reach Dou Zhi Qi 9th Stage. Even if his talent had recovered, reaching the 7th Stage within one year was simply impossible.
"Have you heard of alchemists?" Yao Chen raised his head slightly.
"You mean you are an alchemist?" Xiao Yan asked suspiciously.
"Not only that. I can also make you an alchemist." Yao Chen said.
Because Zhang Yuan had disrupted his plans, he could not afford to be mysterious any longer.
"Are you joking?" Xiao Yan grew even more doubtful, though his voice carried a trace of excitement.
Alchemists, as the name implies, were a group capable of refining pills with various miraculous effects. They were divided into nine tiers. Any alchemist was an existence that all major forces scrambled to recruit.
A powerful alchemist could, with a single word, gather countless people seeking pills to work for him, effectively becoming a mobile powerhouse.
To become an alchemist, one first needed a suitable Dou Qi attribute, and second, sufficiently strong Spiritual Perception.
On the Dou Qi Continent, everyone's Dou Qi had an attribute determined by their soul. A soul usually possesses only one attribute. It was extremely rare for someone to have two attributes of differing strengths. To become an alchemist, one had to possess a fire attribute, supplemented by a trace of wood attribute to catalyze pill refinement.
Among billions, only one such mutant soul would appear.
And on top of that, one still needed strong Spiritual Power.
With such harsh conditions, did he actually qualify?
"He is probably not joking." Zhang Yuan spoke with a calm expression. "At the very least, his Spiritual Power is sufficient."
"How so?" Xiao Yan immediately turned into a curious baby.
Zhang Yuan explained, "During my time in the military, I read many strange accounts of the continent."
"One of those books mentioned that souls also have realms, namely the Mortal Realm, Spirit Realm, and Heaven Realm. Each realm is further divided into Initial, Middle, Late, and Perfect stages."
"It is said that to refine 8th Tier pills, an alchemist's soul must first reach the Spirit Realm. To refine 9th Tier pills, the soul must reach the Heaven Realm... hiss..."
At this point, Zhang Yuan suddenly inhaled sharply, looking at Yao Chen with alertness, surprise, and a trace of excitement. "Could it be that you are the legendary Medicine Sovereign who once shook the Dou Qi Continent?"
Yao Chen's smile froze...
Xiao Yan was completely confused. He had no idea who the Medicine Sovereign was, but the title sounded incredibly impressive.
"How do you recognize this old one?" Yao Chen's expression turned cold, a trace of pale white flashing in his eyes.
His current situation was far from ideal. Even absorbing another person's Dou Qi to recover his soul required the ring to be worn by someone with sufficiently strong soul talent.
If Xiao Yan's strength never increased, absorbing only Dou Zhi Qi would be useless even after decades. He was also afraid that Xiao Yan would be struck too hard and give up cultivation entirely, which was why he planned to appear soon.
Only if Xiao Yan grew stronger and allowed him to absorb Dou Qi could he recover faster and eventually have a chance at revival.
But Zhang Yuan's appearance had completely disrupted his rhythm.
"I guessed." Zhang Yuan replied.
"Guessed?" Yao Chen did not change his expression, but his tone carried disbelief.
Zhang Yuan analyzed calmly. "While training outside, I encountered an opportunity that allowed my soul to reach the Perfect Mortal Realm. Compared to some 5th Tier, 6th Tier, or even 7th Tier alchemists, my soul is stronger. This is also why I am confident in finding the reason Brother Yan cannot cultivate."
"When I returned home earlier, I immediately used my Spiritual Perception to examine Xiao Yan. I discovered that the ring you reside in can block my perception. This means the ring is either extremely special, or there exists a lifeform with stronger Spiritual Power than mine. Now it is clearly the latter."
"In other words, Senior, you possess at least a Spirit Realm soul, making you at least an 8th Tier alchemist."
"One year ago, I had the fortune of attending a public lecture by Fa Ma, the president of the Jia Ma Empire's Alchemist Association. He mentioned that in his youth, while traveling the continent, he once received guidance from the Medicine Sovereign for three days. That Medicine Sovereign mysteriously disappeared decades ago."
"The ring you inhabit was purchased by my grandfather from a stall and gifted to my father. When my aunt married, my father passed it on to her, and it eventually ended up with Brother Yan. I remember the timing clearly."
"Combining this with the fact that you call yourself Yao Lao, I have reason to deduce that you are the legendary 8th Tier high-level alchemist, the Medicine Sovereign, known as the number one alchemist on the continent."
Yao Lao: "..."
This kid was frighteningly sharp.
He actually pieced together his identity using scattered information.
"Damn..." Xiao Yan looked at Zhang Yuan and exclaimed, "Cousin, did Conan possess you?"
Zhang Yuan: "..."
Why not say Sherlock Holmes or Di Renjie?
In truth, he knew all this simply because, like Xiao Yan, he was also a transmigrator.
(End of Chapter)
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