BTTH: From Genius to Invincible

Word Count: 2,189 Words

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The Dou Spirit Pill was a peak tier 4 medicinal pill. Its effect was similar to the Dou King Pill and the Mighty Huang Pill, as all could increase one's strength by one star. However, one could only consume one of each in a lifetime.

Xiao Yan had never used the Dou Spirit Pill before; he had been waiting for this very moment to use it and advance from an 8-star Dou Spirit to the 9-star stage.

An ordinary Dou Spirit Pill might not necessarily allow an 8-star Dou Spirit to reach the 9-star stage. However, Xiao Yan was a 6th-tier alchemist and possessed a Heavenly Flame. The quality of the Dou Spirit Pill he refined for himself was undoubtedly the highest.

As for the other pill, it was the main event: the peak Tier 5 Hegemon King Pill. This was the most powerful and precious among tier 5 pills. Although categorized as tier 5, its refinement difficulty was no less than that of ordinary tier 6 pills.

The effect of the Hegemon King Pill was simple and singular: it allowed a 9-star Dou Spirit to break through that bottleneck and become a Dou King!

Xiao Yan didn't care at all about the so-called Essence Heart Flame Body Tempering because he possessed the Ten Thousand Beast Flame and had used the genuine Core Quenching Body Milk. This tempering was merely better than nothing for him, just like for Zi Yan, who was already a Dou King and only came here out of boredom.

For others like Liu Qing, Lin Xiuya, and Han Yue, undergoing body tempering to pave the way to becoming a Dou King was their pursuit and dream. But for Xiao Yan, Zi Yan, and Xun Er, this was unnecessary; becoming a Dou King was just a matter of time for them.

For Xiao Yan, a 6th-tier alchemist, becoming a Dou King was merely a matter of consuming a pill.

However, while pills were convenient, they also had a fatal flaw. The Dou Qi gained was prone to becoming unstable, and the foundation may not be solid.

Therefore, Xiao Yan came here not for the body tempering itself but to use the Essence Heart Flame to consolidate his Dou Qi, offsetting the side effects of breaking through with pills and making his foundation as a Dou King even more solid!

Xiao Yan knew there was no time to delay when he saw that mass of formless Heart Flame beginning to drift, preparing to enter through his forehead. He directly tossed the Dou Spirit Pill into his mouth.

Instantly, a surge of powerful energy rushed through all his meridians. The pill's energy transformed into the purest threads of Dou Qi as it poured into his Qi cyclone.

Xiao Yan smoothly advanced to the 9-star stage, having been at the 8-star Dou Spirit stage for quite some time. He even faintly began to approach the peak of the Dou Spirit realm.

However, he did not rush to break through to Dou King; instead, he first guided the Essence Heart Flame into his body.

An incomparably terrifying scorching heat instantly enveloped his entire body the moment the Heart Flame entered. He resembled a thoroughly cooked prawn—bright red all over, as if ready to be dipped in sauce and eaten.

"I wonder how many will successfully endure it this time..." First Elder Su Qian murmured to himself.

After glancing at everyone, his attention turned to Xiao Yan. "Why is this kid taking pills? Is he planning to use this to break through to Dou King?!"

First Elder Su Qian was initially stunned, then couldn't help but smile bitterly, sighing inwardly. Alchemists are truly extraordinary; even this is possible.

While others were enduring the pain of body tempering, going through countless hardships to pave the way for breaking through to the Dou King realm, for Xiao Yan, it was just a matter of a single pill.

'If Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing find out about this, they'd probably cough up blood in anger.'

At this moment, the excess Dou Qi in Xiao Yan's body from the Dou Spirit Pill was once again purified and refined by the Essence Heart Flame. The medicinal strength, which was already extremely pure, was forcibly reduced by half.

Wisps of white mist seeped from the top of his head. The meridians, bones, and even blood within his body seemed to become transparent at this moment. The formless flames seeped out from every part of his body, clinging to him like maggots on bones, burning anything that could be burned within.

Even the Dou Qi hidden within his flesh and blood couldn't escape this ordeal. Xiao Yan couldn't observe it directly, but he could feel the Dou Qi hidden throughout his body boiling like hot water, constantly churning.

But this was precisely the effect he wanted!

His Dou Qi had reached the peak of 9-star Dou Spirit due to the Dou Spirit Pill, but now it was decreasing.

Xiao Yan slowly opened his eyes and took out the Hegemon King Pill from the jade bottle when it could decrease no further.

'Holy crap, the Hegemon King Pill!' First Elder Su Qian had sharp eyes and immediately recognized the golden pill in Xiao Yan's hand.

'Ordinary low-grade 6th-tier alchemists have less than a fifty percent success rate in refining the Hegemon King Pill. This kid Xiao Yan's alchemy skills are so strong!'

Under his watchful gaze, Xiao Yan swallowed the Hegemon King Pill in one gulp.

!!!!!!!

Xiao Yan's pupils contracted as an overwhelmingly powerful energy immediately spread throughout his body, making him seem like an inflating balloon, constantly stretching his meridians!

This dual torment made Xiao Yan grit his teeth, with blue veins bulging all over his body, combining the burning of the Essence Heart Flame with the impact of the pill's energy.

Even the First Elder furrowed his brows upon seeing this scene, showing a worried expression. No one had ever tried to break through using the Hegemon King Pill while simultaneously undergoing the Essence Heart Flame Body Tempering before.

Xiao Yan's face appeared slightly purplish due to severe flushing. Bubbles continuously surfaced on his skin. The terrifying energy surging within seemed about to make his entire body explode. In the next moment, the formless Essence Heart Flame began to burn intensely, constantly reducing his Dou Qi.

Expansion, burning, contraction; then expansion again, burning again, contraction again.

His body was like a balloon, sometimes big, sometimes small.

After an unknown amount of time, the student ranked sixth could no longer endure the pain and spat out blood. He slowly opened his eyes, seemingly understanding that he had failed. His gaze was filled with dejection and helplessness.

"You should rest on the side for now. It's common to fail in the Heart Flame Body Tempering; don't take it too hard." The First Elder opened the barrier and let him rest aside.

In the end, the First Elder led a total of two people who failed the body tempering out of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower.

The Essence Heart Flame Body Tempering was a time-consuming process. They all underwent the burning of the Heart Flame during the following three days. During this time, they could clearly feel significant strengthening within their bodies—their meridians, bones, and other aspects all experienced noticeable enhancements.

Typically, the Essence Heart Flame Body Tempering took three days, but there were always exceptions.

The jade platform where Xun Er was seated dimmed on the second day; the Essence Heart Flame had been completely consumed.

First Elder Su Qian wasn't surprised at all when he saw Xun Er exit the platform ahead of time, since he knew where she came from.

"Greetings, First Elder," Xun Er said politely.

"Mm, you can return first. They probably need another day."

Xun Er gently shook her head. After glancing at Xiao Yan's position, she sat to the side and began cultivating; she was naturally waiting for him. Not long after, Zi Yan also emerged from her jade platform.

Zi Yan had already reached the Dou King realm long ago, and her physical strength was unparalleled. This time, she was merely going through the motions, tempering her body while eating the pill candies Xiao Yan had given her. Once she finished eating, she was done.

She glanced at Xiao Yan and, seeing that he was still undergoing body tempering, pouted before turning around to leave the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower.

Soon another day passed. The first to come out were Lin Yan, Han Yue, and Yan Hao. The First Elder didn't expect that Han Yue, who had the lowest cultivation, managed to endure through it. Although her cultivation hadn't increased, it could be imagined that in the near future, she would undoubtedly step into the Dou King realm.

The jade platforms where Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing were seated suddenly erupted with the aura of Dou Kings approximately thirty minutes later, almost simultaneously.

"Wow! They both broke through to Dou King!" Lin Yan's eyes widened. He and Yan Hao were both at the peak of the Dou Spirit stage. After the body tempering, they had touched the threshold of Dou King but hadn't been able to break through!

Han Yue softly said, "It's quite normal. Both of them were already half-step Dou Kings; reaching this point naturally comes as a matter of course."

After speaking, she glanced toward Xiao Yan's position.

Two figures flew up from the jade platforms with two booming sounds, each with a pair of Dou Qi wings behind them, proving that they had indeed reached the Dou King realm!

Liu Qing and Lin Xiuya flew before the First Elder, who nodded with satisfaction and said, "Good, very good. You two have excellent talent. Advancing to Dou Emperor is probably just a matter of time."

Even Lin Xiuya couldn't help but show a pleased expression upon hearing the First Elder's praise. Liu Qing remained expressionless as he turned his head to look at Xiao Yan.

"Why hasn't he come out yet?" he asked.

The First Elder explained, "That fellow Xiao Yan is also attempting to break through to Dou King."

! ! ! ! ! !

Everyone except Xun Er's expressions changed dramatically; they looked at Xiao Yan in astonishment, finding it hard to believe.

"Isn't he just an 8-star Dou Spirit?! It's impossible to reach Dou King in just three days," Lin Yan asked in confusion.

Han Yue's beautiful eyes flickered as she said, "Pills."

"Pills?!"

"Could it be the peak tier 5 Hegemon King Pill?!"

Everyone revealed envious expressions when they saw the First Elder nod. Pills, ah, pills! A single pill had actually surpassed Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing's over a year of hard work!

The Hegemon King Pill's value exceeded that of many tier 6 pills. Moreover, it was priceless; even if one wanted to buy it, it wouldn't be available.

Lin Yan could only smile bitterly. Back when he first met Xiao Yan, his cultivation was higher. Now, not only was his strength inferior, but even his cultivation level was lower.

"But isn't this taking a bit long? With the aid of pills, there's no reason he should be slower than Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing."

Just as everyone was puzzled, suddenly a change occurred!

A tremendous suction force erupted from the jade platform where Xiao Yan was, as if his location had become a massive vortex that was frantically absorbing energy.

"What is this?!"

"I don't know, but does breaking through to Dou King usually look like this?!"

Misfortunes never come singly. First Elder Su Qian, who had been monitoring below, suddenly had a drastic change in expression at that very instant!

"All of you, leave the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower immediately!" With that, his figure immediately disappeared and arrived at the bottom of the tower.

In the lowest level of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, a formless energy was impacting the sealing barrier.

'The energy has become so much stronger... Then... these seals, their effectiveness...' Suddenly recalling something extremely important, the First Elder's heart turned cold. He planned to immediately gather people to reinforce the seal.

Those on the upper floor were startled, realizing that something serious was happening!

"Hurry, let's go!"

"What about Xiao Yan? What exactly is he doing now?!"

Lin Yan looked toward Xiao Yan's direction. At this moment, he seemed to have reached a critical juncture. His eyes were tightly closed, and an extremely terrifying energy seemed to be condensing within his body.

Xun Er slowly stood up. A hint of golden flame flashed through her beautiful eyes as her cool voice rang out, "You all leave here. I will bring Xiao Yan ge-ge out."

With that, she waved her hand and actually pushed the four people out of this space at once. Then, a mass of golden flames appeared out of thin air, sealing the entrance.

Xun Er's expression was solemn. Her eyes flickered with golden flames as she looked downward. It was as if her gaze could penetrate and see the main body of the Fallen Heart Flame below.

"Xiao Yan ge-ge still needs some time..."