Inside the spacious study, Hu Gan gazed at the slowly closing wall mechanism before turning toward Lin Yuan, who stood within the room, and said with a smile, "Alright, you've received your reward. Go back and rest well—tomorrow you'll report to the Inner Academy. How has Old Huo arranged things on his end?"
Lin Yuan replied, "Over the past two days, Teacher Huo has already handed over several pill formulas and alchemy tasks to me. Once I reach the Inner Academy, as long as the medicinal ingredients are available, I can begin refining pills at any time."
"That's good," Hu Gan nodded. "Your arrangements in the Inner Academy have also been settled. The First Elder has decided to let you enter directly as an Elder. After all, having a Dou King act as a student would be rather pointless. However, you won't be assigned any miscellaneous duties—you only need to focus on cultivation and alchemy."
"Thank you, Dean!"
"Go back and prepare. Tomorrow, I'll personally take you to the Inner Academy."
"Yes."
After bidding farewell to the Vice Dean, Lin Yuan made a trip to the Alchemy Department, where he observed Elder Huo refining the Fifth-Grade Mid-Tier pill, Vital Restoration Pill, specifically for him. With his current soul perception, now no weaker than Elder Huo's—many previously unclear points became immediately apparent, greatly strengthening Lin Yuan's confidence in refining fifth-tier pills himself.
Once the Vital Restoration Pill was successfully refined, Elder Huo immediately handed it to Lin Yuan. Under Elder Huo's supervision, Lin Yuan consumed the pill, successfully replenishing two years of lifespan. The urgency in his heart eased slightly as a result.
The next day.
Lin Yuan followed Hu Gan through the vast forested mountains behind the academy, an expanse teeming with various magical beasts. Upon reaching an open clearing, Hu Gan waved his hand, sending a surge of energy shooting forward. The energy struck a seemingly empty region of space, instantly causing ripples like water waves to spread outward. As the ripples intensified, a pale silver gate—seven to eight zhang tall—materialized out of thin air.
"Follow me," Hu Gan said, waving his hand as he stepped through the silver gate.
After passing through the gate, a black-robed old man stood with hands clasped behind his back. Turning around, he revealed white hair and beard, his eyes sharp and cold like blades as they fixed upon Lin Yuan.
Hu Gan was slightly startled. "First Elder, why are you here?"
The old man was none other than Su Qian, the First Elder of the Inner Academy.
After scrutinizing Lin Yuan for several breaths, Su Qian turned to Hu Gan and revealed a satisfied smile. "I happened to be nearby and sensed your aura, so I came over. This must be Lin Yuan, the little genius of Jia Nan Academy?"
Hearing this, Lin Yuan stepped forward, clasped his fists, and bowed respectfully. "Student Lin Yuan greets the First Elder."
Hu Gan smiled faintly at the side and said, "First Elder, since you're here, I'll leave Lin Yuan in your care. I still have many matters to attend to, so I'll be taking my leave."
Su Qian nodded. "Go on, then."
Hu Gan turned to Lin Yuan. "Do well in the Inner Academy, kid." Without waiting for a reply, he turned and flew away.
Su Qian patted Lin Yuan's shoulder and said, "Come, Lin kid. Let's head to the Inner Academy. I've long heard Hu Gan and the others speak of you—seeing you today, it seems they weren't exaggerating. It looks like their work in the Outer Academy has been quite successful. I'm very pleased."
With that, he led Lin Yuan toward the Inner Academy's residential area.
Upon arrival, Su Qian explained Lin Yuan's arrangements in detail. The Inner Academy had prepared a courtyard for him in the Elders' District and issued him an Elder's token, along with a Purple Fire Crystal Card containing a large amount of fire energy. Lin Yuan's task was to cultivate while completing the alchemy assignments given by Elder Huo. Medicinal ingredients could be withdrawn from the materials repository upon registration—Su Qian had already informed Elder Hao, who managed the repository.
After leaving the First Elder's office, Lin Yuan followed the map directly to the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, intending to experience one of Jia Nan Academy's defining features.
Upon arriving at the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, Lin Yuan entered directly. The instant his feet touched the ground inside the tower, a cluster of strange, invisible flames appeared within his body. The scorching heat emitted by these formless flames immediately caused slight pain in his meridians, bones, muscles, and internal organs.
Lin Yuan closed his eyes, first using his powerful soul strength to stabilize the invisible flames. Then, with interest, he guided his Dou Qi to make contact with them. As expected, Dou Qi refined by the invisible flames became noticeably purer. Under the continuous circulation of his Dou Qi, the small flame quickly dissipated.
"This flame is too weak. Its effect on a Dou King is minimal. I should head deeper," Lin Yuan thought.
With that, he directly stepped downward, heading further into the tower.
In the end, Lin Yuan chose an unoccupied single-person cultivation room on the lowest level. Sitting cross-legged on the cultivation stone platform, he inserted the Fire Crystal Card. Feeling the Fallen Heart Flame that appeared within his body was far stronger than before, he revealed a satisfied smile.
"This place is perfect. The intensity of the Fallen Heart Flame is much higher, enough to temper my Dou Qi and solidify my foundation."
Immediately after, he closed his eyes, formed hand seals, and began cultivating.
One month later.
Inside a cultivation room on the lower levels of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, Lin Yuan—who had been cultivating with his eyes closed—slowly moved his hands through a series of seals. When the final seal was completed, he gradually opened his eyes.
After standing up, Lin Yuan willed it with a thought and used a Pill Flame Technique to swiftly condense a solid fire cone. He probed it with his soul perception, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
"It's much more condensed than it was a month ago. It seems that the improvement in Dou Qi quality has an even greater impact on Pill Flame Techniques than I expected."
Dispersing the fire cone, Lin Yuan sensed his current condition.
"Spending an entire month tempering my Dou Qi truly wasn't a waste. The quality of my Dou Qi has improved significantly, and my cultivation has also advanced somewhat. I'm closer to a Three-Star Dou King now, though I'm still just short. As expected, advancement after reaching Dou King is much slower than before."
After Sorting out his thoughts, Lin Yuan retrieved his Fire Crystal Card, opened the cultivation room door, and walked outside.
As he headed upward, several students noticed that the young and unfamiliar Lin Yuan was coming up from below, and they could not help but feel puzzled.
A Two-Star Dou Spirit behind him raised his hand and reached for Lin Yuan's shoulder, asking, "You look unfamiliar, fellow student. May I ask—" Mid-sentence, his hand passed straight through "Lin Yuan."
His expression instantly changed. "An afterimage?"
It was an afterimage created by Lin Yuan through the combined use of the Soaring Dragon Step and Instant Step.
In order to temper himself and refine his Dou Techniques, Lin Yuan often applied many Dou Qi control methods from various Dou Techniques into everyday activities, strengthening his mastery over combat techniques, Dou Qi, and soul power. As such, he was especially adept at combining multiple Dou Techniques for use.
The student turned his head, only to see Lin Yuan's true body already more than ten meters away. He flickered once more, leaving behind another afterimage as he appeared even farther away, vanishing from that level in an instant.
In the distance, a silver-haired woman saw this and murmured softly with a hint of confusion.
"Lin Yuan?"