Chapter 237: Chapter 237: Invincible!
Word Count: 2,404 Words
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"What is that sound? Has a true dragon appeared?!"
Everyone in various parts of the Inner Academy was greatly startled, including those who had not come to watch the battle and were still cultivating in the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower.
"Why is a dragon's roar echoing throughout the Inner Academy???"
There were very few rooms on the seventh floor of the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, only ten in total. Each cultivation room had a number inscribed on its door, from one to ten.
These were exclusive rooms reserved for the top ten on the Strong Ranking. Each room represented power and status!
At this moment, in Room No. 3, a man who was cultivating suddenly opened his eyes. It was Liu Qing, the founder of the Splitting Mountain, renowned for his Mountain Splitting Spear.
"This is a dragon's roar? Has a true dragon emerged?!" Liu Qing frowned deeply. Hearing such a sound here meant it was very close to the Inner Academy.
Liu Qing retrieved his Fire Energy Card, opened the door, and prepared to leave the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower to find out what was happening.
The door of Room No. 2 next to Liu Qing slowly opened with a creak. A scholarly-looking man in white robes walked out as well.
"Lin Xiuya, you heard it too?" Liu Qing asked in a deep voice.
Lin Xiuya nodded slightly and said, "I once encountered a Rank 6 dragon beast with a dragon bloodline. Its dragon roar was very similar to this one."
Soon after, Yan Hao from Room No. 5, Qin Zhen from Room No. 6, Qian Mo from Room No. 8, and Lin Yan from Room No. 9, all of whom were still cultivating in the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower and ranked on the Strong Ranking, walked out of their cultivation rooms one after another.
These people had known each other from the previous Strong Ranking Grand Competition. They nodded to each other and unanimously left the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, intending to investigate.
By this time, the dragon's roar had vanished, and the blood-red sea of flames had disappeared as well. Only the shattered ground and some senior students, half-kneeling on the ground, proved that what had just occurred was not an illusion.
Drip, drip, the sound of blood dripping echoed. Although those 1- or 2-star Dou Spirits had not lost consciousness, blood was silently flowing from their ears and noses, proving how powerful the damage inflicted by the sonic Dou Technique had been on their souls and bodies.
Sonic Dou Techniques were different from traditional Dou Techniques. They specialized in penetrating defenses, which meant they would cause internal injuries. Moreover, with the addition of dragon aura and the Heavenly Flame, enemies felt a burning pain in their souls, as if their internal organs were on fire.
This sudden change left all the spectators, as well as all the members of Xiao Hall, stunned. Even Xun Er was momentarily dazed. Such a scene was truly shocking.
'The sound of this sonic Dou Technique... why does it resemble that race…' Xun Er lightly furrowed her brows, her beautiful eyes watching Xiao Yan in the distance. He was panting heavily yet had a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
When she was young and had returned to her clan, she had followed her father to meet a legendary dragon tribe. Their roars were somewhat similar to what Xiao Yan had just produced.
Although not exactly the same, Xun Er could tell that it was indeed the roar of the Ancient Void Dragon.
The three referee elders were all dumbfounded, unable to regain their senses for a long time. All the spectators were similarly stunned. Out of the two hundred senior students whose cultivations were above Dou Grandmaster, comparable to a small faction in the Black-Corner Region, over half had collapsed under Xiao Yan's single roar. Those who remained standing had suffered varying degrees of internal injuries, and their souls trembled.
Even Yao Sheng, ranked 17th on the Strong Ranking, was shaking after the dragon roar. Although he was strong and had not suffered severe internal injuries, his internal organs now felt a burning sensation.
The circulation of Dou Qi was disrupted and could not flow smoothly due to the damage inflicted on his soul.
Fortunately, the arena had a protective barrier; otherwise, the spectators sitting opposite Xiao Yan would have suffered an unwarranted disaster.
"Dragon might, and extremely potent dragon might at that," Elder Liu finally muttered after who knew how long.
Dragon might. Many practitioners had heard the term but had never witnessed its true power. Today, Xiao Yan, a human cultivator, had actually used it, and it shocked the entire Inner Academy.
In the distance, even the First Elder Su Qian, who had witnessed everything, revealed a shocked expression and murmured, "How does this little fellow have dragon aura within his body?"
"That blood-red flame... Could it be that the Heavenly Flame he possesses is the Ten Thousand Beast Flame, the inherited flame of the magical beast race?"
At this moment, the arena was silent for a full three minutes. This was Xiao Yan's first time using the Ancient Dragon Roar, and its Dou Qi consumption was even more terrifying than he had imagined.
After all, the Ancient Dragon Roar was a large-scale sonic attack. It could be said to be unrivaled in clearing out small fry.
Xiao Yan regulated his breathing and turned his head to look at Zi Yan, who was munching on medicinal ingredients beside him. She noticed him looking over and proudly raised her chin, as if to say, 'See? I was right.'
The fact that Xiao Yan could cultivate the Ancient Dragon Roar was indeed thanks to Zi Yan, for she had told him where his problem lay.
His pitch was off.
The actual cultivation requirement for the Ancient Dragon Roar was not as the scroll had described. There was another condition for cultivating it: one had to understand the Dragon Language. The person or creature who created the scroll had never considered that a non-dragon would try to cultivate it.
Dragon Language, the language of the dragon race.
The Ancient Dragon Roar was not simply a matter of roaring loudly by following the Dou Qi circulation. The greatest difficulty lay in the 'tone.'
What Zi Yan had whispered in his ear not long ago was very simple: the Dragon Language he spoke sounded strange and distorted.
In more understandable terms, it was like a foreigner trying to speak Mandarin after hearing it only once. The pronunciation would inevitably be inaccurate.
At that moment, Xiao Yan understood why he could not use the Ancient Dragon Roar: his tone was off. That was why Zi Yan had scolded him, asking what the hell he was howling about.
Zi Yan had merely helped him correct his pronunciation and had not done anything else.
Originally, with the Ten Thousand Beast Flame, Xiao Yan could achieve twice the result with half the effort when cultivating suitable Beast Techniques. The Ten Thousand Beast Flame was the inherited flame of the magical beast race, and its miraculous properties not only strengthened the bloodlines of magical beasts but also made it easier for them to cultivate Beast Techniques.
Therefore, after having his Dragon Language pronunciation corrected by Zi Yan, he naturally grasped it.
Of course, he was still far from reaching even minor mastery of the Ancient Dragon Roar. He could only be said to be able to use it at this point.
'What is this girl Zi Yan's background? She actually understands the Dragon Language. Could her true form be a dragon?!' Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed slightly. He did not know the status of the Dragon Language in the world of magical beasts.
Perhaps all magical beasts could understand it, or maybe only those with dragon bloodlines could. He naturally did not know.
'I'll ask Queen Medusa about it after this matter is settled. The Snake-People Tribe should be considered part of the magical beast race, right?' Xiao Yan thought.
With a few groans, the strongest fighters, Bai Cheng and Yao Sheng, regained their senses and stood up.
Yao Sheng brandished his daggers, his expression grave as he said, "Xiao Yan, the battle isn't over yet!"
Bai Cheng gripped his long spear with both hands; the spear tip gleamed as it pointed at Xiao Yan.
After all, Xiao Yan had only just grasped the basics of the Ancient Dragon Roar, and this kind of sonic attack focused more on assaulting the soul when targeting individuals. Yao Sheng's and Bai Cheng's cultivations were both higher than his, and their Dou Qi had managed to block quite a bit of it.
Moreover, among the fallen senior students, they were all Dou Grandmasters; not a single Dou Spirit had collapsed.
Xun Er slowly walked to Xiao Yan's side and said with ease, "Xiao Yan ge-ge, focus on dealing with those two. The others have all suffered soul injuries and can be left to us."
Xiao Yan looked at the girl who had always accompanied him and firmly stood by his side. He smiled warmly and said, "Alright, I'll leave the others to you. Be careful though; they're still Dou Spirits after all."
Xun Er chuckled softly, her beautiful eyes showing a hint of playfulness as she said, "So am I."
With a buzzing sound, Xun Er actually erupted with Dou Spirit-level fluctuations. Xiao Yan could sense that this wasn't from using a Secret Technique to boost her strength; she had truly reached the Dou Spirit realm!
Upon entering the Inner Academy, Xun Er had switched to cultivating a Di Class Qi Method obtained from the Book Collection Hall. During the seven days in the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower, she had similarly relied on the Heart Flame to break through to the Dou Spirit realm in one go!
"You little lass will really surpass me if I slack off even a bit." Xiao Yan wore a wry smile. As expected of someone from a Dou God Clan, Xun Er's cultivation speed could indeed keep up with a freak like him.
Bai Cheng stomped heavily on the ground, his figure transforming into a yellow blur as Dou Qi rapidly condensed at the tip of his spear. Utilizing the momentum, he aligned his body with the spear's shaft. His body and the long spear, now enveloped in Dou Qi, practically fused into one. The spear tore through the air and stabbed straight at Xiao Yan.
At the same time, Yao Sheng's movements were nimble, and his hands spun the daggers as the two of them flanked Xiao Yan from the left and right.
After experiencing Xiao Yan's earlier sonic Dou Technique, they realized how terrifying he was. They no longer spoke of fair one-on-one duels and instead directly attacked with a two-on-one formation!
Naturally, Xiao Yan would not underestimate these two. They were 6-star and 7-star Dou Spirit experts and ranked fighters on the Strong Ranking, and their strength was definitely not to be taken lightly!
He activated the Skyfire Three Mysterious Change once more. Since it was his second use today, Xiao Yan had to adapt by using the Life Flame of the Yin-Yang Twin Flame to execute it. His strength increased by three stars, pushing him to the 6-star Dou Spirit stage.
Bringing out the Heavy Xuan Ruler to meet the attack, the originally extremely heavy ruler danced in his hands even more nimbly than Bai Cheng's long spear. Under his fierce, powerful momentum, Bai Cheng and Yao Sheng were caught off guard and appeared somewhat flustered.
Lightning flashed, and Xiao Yan left behind an afterimage. After Bai Cheng's spear pierced the afterimage generated by the Three Thousand Lightning Movement, Xiao Yan appeared behind him. The Heavy Xuan Ruler then fiercely smacked his butt, sending him flying into the air.
Two 'clang' sounds echoed as Xiao Yan blocked Yao Sheng's sneaky dagger attack. He revealed a faint smile, opened his mouth, and a dragon roar emerged. Though not as intense as the initial one, it still caused Yao Sheng to cough up blood.
After training with Zi Yan, Xiao Yan could not claim to use the Three Thousand Lightning Movement and Ancient Dragon Roar with complete ease, yet he could still display some of their power in battle.
Using multiple Di Class Dou Techniques, Xiao Yan actually gained the upper hand when facing the joint attacks of Yao Sheng and Bai Cheng!
Elder Liu smiled and nodded. "That boy is indeed very strong."
Seated in the audience, Han Yue slightly furrowed her delicate brows and agreed, murmuring to herself, "Although Bai Cheng and Yao Sheng's Dou Qi cultivation is on par with Xiao Yan's, boosted by a Secret Technique, his movement techniques are extremely powerful. Moreover, that sonic Dou Technique is too strange. A slight carelessness and they will be hit, suffering severe soul injuries."
"Furthermore, from the very beginning, that sonic Dou Technique had already inflicted soul damage on them, causing their Dou Qi circulation to become sluggish."
"Their only chance of winning is if Xiao Yan's Secret Technique wears off and his Dou Qi is exhausted."
Elder Liu shook his head and said, "No, the senior students' side cannot hold out until Xiao Yan's Dou Qi is depleted."
Han Yue's beautiful eyes sharpened, and only then did she notice that the dozen or so Dou Spirit-level senior students were already struggling to hold on!
Not to mention the other weaker senior students. Even the strongest among them, Lei Na and Fu Ao, though middle-stage Dou Spirits, had their souls injured by Xiao Yan's Ancient Dragon Roar. They could not even use Dou Techniques, and the Dou Qi within their bodies had been scattered by the dragon might, making it difficult to gather.
With Xun Er having reached the Dou Spirit realm, she was practically overwhelming those senior students. Even Xiao Yu, Xiao Ning, and the others could steadily suppress the injured Dou Spirit senior students.
In the end, neither Bai Cheng nor Yao Sheng managed to hold out until Xiao Yan's Dou Qi was exhausted. Xun Er, having dealt with Lei Na and Fu Ao, joined forces with Xiao Yan. With a palm strike each, they sent the two tumbling off the arena, spewing blood.
"Great teamwork, Xun Er."
"It's all because Xiao Yan ge-ge is powerful."