Chapter 2: Dou Shi

Three days later.

Through cultivating Crimson Flame Art, Wei Yang successfully converted the milky white, attribute-less Dou Qi in his dantian into a faint red, fire-attributed Dou Qi.

Inside his dantian, the faint red Qi cyclone appeared unremarkable at first glance, yet it emitted a subtle heat.

By practicing a cultivation technique, not only did his Dou Qi become more condensed—improving its quality—but the quantity also increased, which in turn enhanced the power of his Dou Qi significantly.

This was the benefit of cultivating a technique, even if it was only a Huang-Grade high-level technique.

Compared to the initial, attribute-less milky-white Dou Qi, the fire-attributed Dou Qi refined through cultivation was far superior in both quality and quantity.

Wei Yang clenched his fists, clearly feeling how much stronger he had become.

However, he quickly suppressed this excitement.

"Continue cultivating. Right now, I'm just a mere Dou Zhe—I can't afford to be arrogant."

"I won't leave seclusion until I reach Dou Shi!"

Wei Yang closed his eyes again and resumed cultivating, circulating the technique to steadily strengthen his Dou Qi cyclone.

Perhaps due to his innate talent or some other reason, cultivating this Huang Grade high-level technique seemed to be progressing faster than expected.

This was likely a case of having great talent but an inadequate technique—his talent and his cultivation method did not match, preventing him from fully unleashing his potential. However, because his talent was so exceptional, it still improved the cultivation speed of this otherwise ordinary technique.

If one's talent was lacking, a superior cultivation method could compensate.

But if one's talent was exceptional while the technique was inferior, it was like a strong horse pulling a small cart—inefficient and wasteful.

It was a case of working twice as hard for half the results.

Time passed.

In the blink of an eye, another three years had gone by.

Inside a dimly lit room, a handsome young man dressed in black sat cross-legged with his eyes closed.

Suddenly, his body trembled slightly, and a powerful aura surged forth before gradually dissipating after a few seconds.

Wei Yang opened his eyes, and a faint red light flickered in his deep black pupils.

"Huff—"

He slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air.

"Six-star Dou Shi!"

Clenching his fists, he felt the surging Dou Qi within him, and a satisfied smile appeared on his lips.

Three more years of effort.

Using only a Huang Grade high-level technique, without any fortunate encounters, without consuming any pills to assist his cultivation, and relying solely on secluded bitter training…

At most, he had occasionally used his knowledge of herbs to concoct some body-tempering medicinal baths.

And yet, he had reached the level of a six-star Dou Shi, just one step away from becoming a high-rank Dou Shi.

This speed was already quite fast.

Moreover, during these past three years, Wei Yang had continuously suppressed and compressed his Dou Qi, focusing on solidifying his foundation. He always ensured that he had refined his Dou Qi to the utmost limit before breaking through.

Otherwise, he might have already reached the peak of nine-star Dou Shi by now.

At fifteen years old, he had reached the level of a six-star Dou Shi.

Dou Shi—this rank marked a departure from the realm of ordinary cultivators.

Although a Dou Shi was still considered a lower-tier existence across the entire continent, within the Jia Ma Empire—especially in Wu Tan City—this rank could already be considered mid-to-upper class.

At the very least, compared to Dou Zhe, which was practically the bottom tier of cultivation ranks, Dou Shi was undeniably superior and far more powerful.

Wei Yang stood up and clenched his fists.

A sensation of unprecedented strength coursed through every part of his body.

Only by personally stepping into the realm of Dou Shi could one truly understand just how vast the gap between Dou Zhe and Dou Shi was.

It wasn't just twice or three times—it was ten times, even dozens of times the difference.

Wei Yang slowly stretched his body.

Crack! Crackle!

A series of popping sounds erupted from his bones, resembling the sound of frying beans.

Standing in place, Wei Yang extended his right palm. With a thought, a faint red Dou Qi, interwoven with a hint of indistinct gold, suddenly surged forth from his hand and swiftly spread across his entire body.

A moment later, the Dou Qi condensed, forming a thin, translucent layer that enveloped his body.

Dou Qi Cloak!

This was the signature skill of a Dou Shi—also one of the most practical abilities.

It provided boosts in speed, defense, and attack power.

And because Wei Yang was already a six-star Dou Shi, his Dou Qi Cloak appeared exceptionally dense and sturdy, covering every inch of his body completely.

At this level, the Dou Qi of a Dou Shi could already be projected beyond the body to attack enemies.

These were abilities that a mere Dou Zhe did not possess.

Standing in place, Wei Yang was enveloped in a strikingly majestic, faint red cloak of Dou Qi. A wave of heat radiated from him, causing the surrounding temperature to rise significantly.

He threw a few punches toward the air in front of him.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Even without using Dou Qi, the sheer force of his punches tore through the air, producing sharp, whistling wind sounds.

Wei Yang nodded in satisfaction. "Over the past three years, thanks to my knowledge of medicinal properties, I've been able to concoct my own body-tempering liquid for medicinal baths. Because of that, my physique is far stronger than that of an ordinary Dou Shi at the same level."

Regularly soaking in body-tempering liquid, combined with the energy baptism he experienced upon breaking through to Dou Shi last year, had refined and strengthened his body, making it what it was today—powerful beyond comparison.

"Xiao Yan is almost twelve years old now. Not long ago, he broke through to Dou Zhe, becoming a prodigy known throughout the entire Jia Ma Empire, his name spreading far and wide."

"But according to the timeline, he should be about to face the troubles of having his Dou Qi absorbed by Yao Lao, that old fox."

"Heh, from heaven to hell in an instant. Raised to the skies, only to come crashing down... The higher he climbs, the harder he will fall."

Wei Yang withdrew his Dou Qi Cloak, completely restraining his aura until he seemed no different from an ordinary person, chuckling inwardly.

That meant there were still three years before the official start of the main storyline.

He could use these three years to plan carefully and carve out his own path.

As for Xiao Yan, Wei Yang held no particular hostility toward him. He wasn't interested in sabotaging or deliberately opposing him.

After all, they had no personal grudges. And more importantly, in a way, they were both from the same hometown.

There was no need to fawn over him, but there was also no reason to go out of his way to make an enemy of him. Cooperation and mutual benefit were far more sensible options.

If he couldn't become an alchemist himself, then he could simply befriend one.

Going against the protagonist of destiny required a tremendous amount of courage.

It was practically courting death.

At least, from Wei Yang's perspective, it was completely unnecessary.

He wasn't some Long Aotian type of character.

(TN : Chinese version of Gary Stu/Mary Sue)

Xiao Yan's personality wasn't the most likable, but it wasn't terrible either. At the very least, he treated his friends well.

Aside from being somewhat indecisive in romantic matters, he wasn't too bad overall. He wasn't a backstabber. Everyone had some level of selfishness—it wasn't as if he was supposed to be a saint.

As a friend, Xiao Yan was trustworthy.

That said, when it came to fortunate encounters, he still had to fight for them.

"Now that I've reached six-star Dou Shi, I finally have some ability to protect myself in the Jia Ma Empire. It's time to venture out and seek some opportunities."

"As long as I'm cautious and don't provoke people I shouldn't, there shouldn't be too much trouble," Wei Yang thought to himself.

"My first stop will be Qingshan Town."