Xiao Clan, Back Mountain Cave
"Nine Heavens Answer the Origin, All Things Return to Truth, Wielding Thunder to Act, Enforcing Heaven's Punishment!"
Reading the opening of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Canon, Xiao Bai wondered if he'd landed in the wrong world. Cultivators in the Dou Qi Continent don't face tribulation lightning. Who am I supposed to punish?
True, high-grade pills like those of the seventh rank triggered thunder tribulations, but only alchemists with Spirit Realm souls could refine them. Xiao Bai had no desire to court an early death.
Whatever. I'll cultivate it and see. With the talisman's backing, he doubted any thunder-attribute technique in the Dou Qi Continent could surpass the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Canon.
The technique felt oddly mismatched with this world. Enforcing Heaven's Punishment? Does the Dou Qi Continent even have a Heavenly Dao? Xiao Bai wasn't sure. Still, even a watered-down version would outshine anything he could get his hands on. At best, he might beg Xun'er for a low-grade Di-class technique, but that would require shameless pleading.
If this technique isn't at least better than a low-grade Di-class, it might as well change its name. Don't tarnish such a grand title.
He recalled the talisman's name in his sea of consciousness—Zixiao Divine Thunder, the so-called Thunder of the Heavenly Dao. Even a watered-down version of a watered-down version would still be top-tier.
Pushing aside his musings, Xiao Bai carefully studied the technique's details in his mind. It was a holistic method, cultivating energy, body, and soul simultaneously. The soul cultivation, however, seemed impractical in the Dou Qi Continent, so he set it aside for now.
Energy and body cultivation were expected. Thunder cultivators naturally trained both, as the body needed to withstand thunder's ferocity. Thunder embodied destruction, but at its extreme, it birthed life, much like yin birthing yang or vice versa. Thus, thunder was ideal for body refinement, the two aspects reinforcing each other.
Satisfied he understood the technique, Xiao Bai formed hand seals, preparing to convert his attributeless Dou Qi into thunder-attribute Dou Qi per the method's instructions.
After circulating the technique through a full cycle, he sensed ambient thunder-attribute Dou Qi entering his body. It flowed along the prescribed paths, completing a circuit before settling into his dantian's core.
Silver light flickered at the center of his qi vortex, with occasional sparks of electricity. As more silver light poured in, the entire vortex took on a silvery sheen, and the attributeless Dou Qi gradually transformed into thunder-attribute Dou Qi.
Soon, the milky-white Dou Qi vanished, replaced by silver-white thunder-attribute Dou Qi. The vortex shimmered with occasional electric arcs, beautiful yet faintly dangerous.
Xiao Bai's cultivation surged to three-star Dou Zhe. This was the fruit of five years lingering at the ninth stage of Dou Zhi Qi. Though much of his effort had gone into nourishing his five organs, he hadn't neglected his dantian's daily cultivation.
Five years of accumulation was substantial, and he sensed there was still room for growth. His cultivation would likely rise further in the short term.
The technique's quality must be high. Though unranked, its level was undoubtedly exceptional. A lesser technique might have pushed him a few stars higher, but that would've traded long-term potential for short-term gains—a foolish deal Xiao Bai wouldn't make.
Stretching, he felt unburdened. The five-year stagnation was resolved, and he'd secured a powerful technique to boot. Refreshed, he decided to test his thunder-attribute Dou Qi with a few Dou Techniques he'd learned years ago: Frost Heaven Fist, Cloud-Dispersing Palm, and the movement technique Wind God Legs. These Huang-class high-grade techniques had no inherent attribute affinity, their names merely decorative.
He started with Wind God Legs. Thunder attributes are known for speed. Let's see how this fares. A spark of electricity flickered at his feet, and he shot forward.
"Ah!"
A scream echoed through the cave. Xiao Bai collapsed on the far side, curled in agony, twitching uncontrollably, his face ashen as if enduring unbearable torment.
Just as he'd dashed across the cave, a disturbance stirred in his sea of consciousness. Sinking his mind into it, he saw the talisman—now larger than before. A corner of its runes glowed green, transforming it fully into a divine decree.
The green light, roughly one percent of the decree's surface, shimmered with electric sparks. Suddenly, a green thunderbolt shot from the glowing runes. It passed through his sea of consciousness without harm, streaking toward his liver.
When the green thunderbolt struck his liver, excruciating pain hit, triggering his earlier scream.
Breathing became a struggle. His right side felt as if a knife had been plunged in, twisting relentlessly, shredding his insides.
Pounding the ground, teeth clenched, bloodshot eyes brimming with tears, he bled from his eye corners. Crimson drops stained his white robes, blooming like plum blossoms. Broken murmurs slipped through gritted teeth.
I can't… pass out. I can't… pass out. If I do… it's all over!
Through the decree's connection, he understood the green thunderbolt's nature.
It was Yi Wood True Thunder, a thunder seed born of heaven and earth, akin to a strange fire. Among thunder seeds, it was the gentlest, but still a thunderbolt with fearsome destructive power. He needed to circulate the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Canon immediately to refine it into his liver, or even its mildness would wreak havoc.
"Ah!"
Suppressing the pain, Xiao Bai roared, dragging himself upright. Trembling, he sat cross-legged, hands shakily forming seals to activate the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder Canon.
The Yi Wood True Thunder in his liver began to unravel. Strands of its essence entered his meridians, intensifying the agony. Now, not just his liver but his entire meridian network was ravaged by the thunder's ferocity. Green electric arcs occasionally sparked across his body.
Xiao Bai bit down, enduring.
As the essence completed a cycle, it grew tamer, losing its volatility. The Yi Wood energy within began repairing his damaged meridians and flesh, strengthening them. The pain eased significantly.
After three cycles, the essence returned to his liver, forming a new, faint Yi Wood True Thunder seed. Refined by the technique, it was now under Xiao Bai's control, no longer harming his liver but aiding its restoration.
As the decree's original thunder seed was gradually refined and diminished, the new seed grew stronger. Xiao Bai's pain subsided, and he exhaled in relief.
When the final strand of the decree's thunder seed was refined, it vanished, fully replaced by the new seed.
A vibrant life force erupted within Xiao Bai. The pain vanished, replaced by a warm, nurturing sensation, as if he were back in the womb. Hidden injuries from past cultivation, barely noticeable before, were swept away. A sense of unshackled freedom surged within him.
Though Yi Wood True Thunder was less potent than other thunder seeds, its healing prowess was unmatched.
Sensing his cultivation, Xiao Bai was overjoyed. All that suffering was worth it!