'Huh? Another restriction?'
As he quickly gathered Spirit Medicines, he also absorbed the dense Fire Elemental Power in the air.
Yang Xiao was about to reach the very depths.
But a restriction blocked his path.
Although this restriction was a higher level than the one at the entrance of the Earth Flame Cave, its strength was limited, and Yang Xiao could easily spot its flaws.
However, its defenses were much stronger than the one outside the cave.
Previously, even if Yang Xiao had been able to spot the flaws, he might not have had the power to break through.
But now was different.
Now that he had refined the True Greater Yang Fire, his destructive power had fundamentally increased.
Although the True Greater Yang Fire's destructive power was only a sliver stronger than that of the Origin Flame, this sliver represented a fundamental difference.
More importantly, if he attacked directly with the Origin Flame, he would inevitably deplete the flame itself. If he encountered an overwhelming force, it could even damage his foundation.
But the True Greater Yang Fire was different.
It was like this: the Origin Flame was like one's raw physical strength, while the True Greater Yang Fire was like a Martial Artist's Inner Qi. Both were forms of power, but overusing physical strength would harm the body and severely injure a Martial Artist.
Inner Qi, however, was a refined energy. Using it all up would, at worst, lead to exhaustion. Once depleted, it simply needed to be recovered.
It wouldn't cause any actual harm to his body.
It was just like when Yang Xiao previously injected the Heaven and Earth Origin Flame into his Qilin True Body to strengthen it; his own cultivation realm had dropped as a result.
But if he had used True Greater Yang Fire, that absolutely would not have happened.
He would have only needed to recover his energy.
It was the same for other Martial Artists.
Because this was all cultivated energy.
Yang Xiao had been a special case only because he previously lacked a Cultivation Technique.
So, faced with this restriction, as long as Yang Xiao was willing, he could break it with his True Greater Yang Fire.
But what would happen after he broke it?
'Upon closer inspection, this restriction seems to have a warning function. If I force my way through, I'll be able to see what's inside, but it will alert the upper echelons of Medicine King Valley. Even if I manage to get something, I might not be able to get it out.'
'I should use my Spiritual Power to probe it first.'
Yang Xiao thought for a moment and made his decision.
Although he had refined the True Greater Yang Fire, Yang Xiao's own strength was still at the Martial Grandmaster Peak level. In fact, without his Qilin True Body, he was even a bit weaker than a typical Martial Grandmaster at the Peak.
If he really alerted the higher-ups of Medicine King Valley, it would be fine if he only encountered a Martial Grandmaster at the Peak; he would still have a fighting chance. But if a Martial Saint personally took action...
He would be doomed.
A Martial Saint.
If Yang Xiao wasn't mistaken, mortals at this realm were not really mortals anymore.
They were existences that stood between mortals and Spirit-level Life forms who possessed Divine Techniques.
In Ancient Times, such beings were collectively called the Extraordinary.
It was a preparatory stage to becoming a Spirit-level Life form.
They possessed some Pseudo Divine Techniques.
Their power was somewhat similar to the Secret Skills of the Immortal Dao.
Although they couldn't compare to true Divine Techniques, their power still surpassed that of ordinary mortal Martial Arts.
Furthermore, Yang Xiao had seen the Spiritual Brand within the Sacred Celestial Blade and knew that this type of being was terrifying, having already refined their own True Martial Intent.
Their destructive power was definitely beyond what a mortal could imagine.
Even Yang Xiao, before stepping into the Yellow Flame Realm, couldn't contend with them.
And before entering the Yellow Flame Realm, Yang Xiao wanted to first temper his physical body and complete the cultivation of the Basic Chapter of the Nine Yang Celestial Skill.
Doing so would be of great benefit to him when he stepped into the Yellow Flame Realm.
The two Supreme Divine Techniques left by his master might even begin to reveal a trace of their might.
Although it would be very weak, it would be enough to make him invincible among those of the same rank.
He might even be able to challenge those of a higher rank.
So, to be cautious, Yang Xiao decided to probe with his Spiritual Power first.
In truth, probing with Spiritual Power also required skill.
Because this restriction didn't just block people and energy; it also sealed away Spiritual Power. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a restriction.
Faced with such a restriction, if it were anyone else...
If they couldn't see the restriction's flaws, even with Spiritual Power at the Observing Micro High Peak, they wouldn't be able to probe inside. Forcibly probing would likewise alert the people of Medicine King Valley.
But Yang Xiao was different.
This restriction had flaws.
To him, it was very low-level.
Although he couldn't enter directly, it was still possible to probe it with his Spiritual Power.
He directly sent his Spiritual Power through the restriction's flaws to scan the area within.
With this scan, Yang Xiao's expression instantly changed.
He was astonished.
'Th-there's really a Medicine King of the Ancient Spirit Medicine Level here?'
In his spiritual vision, Yang Xiao saw a cyan lotus situated in the deepest part of the cave, rooted in orange-red magma.
He was truly shocked.
He had guessed that there might be something incredible here.
He had never expected it to be true.
And, just as he had guessed, it was a medicinal ingredient of the Ancient Spirit Medicine Level.
'If I can get my hands on it...'
'Refining its medicinal properties and spiritual essence would definitely cause my constitution to undergo a brand-new transformation.'
'Not only will I be able to break through to the Yellow Flame Realm...'
'...it will also increase my Spiritual Power by a huge amount.'
'Perhaps even getting me close to the Observing Micro High Peak.'
'It would be enough to make up for the medicinal essence of the Divine Communication Grass I've consumed recently for the Nine Revolutions Concentration Spirit Technique.'
'Divine Communication Grass is a divine herb that nourishes the spirit, but its effect on Spiritual Power is gradual and inevitably slow. The spiritual essence of these Ancient Spirit Medicines, however... if I refine it properly, it's like directly devouring spiritual energy to increase my Spiritual Power, and even the foundation of my Soul.'
Yang Xiao stared at the cyan lotus.
He was practically drooling.
However, he didn't act impulsively.
'I have to get out. Get out first and make preparations. The restriction at the entrance of the Earth Flame Cave is nothing to me anyway. As long as I prepare properly, even if I break this inner restriction, who would ever suspect me?'
With that, Yang Xiao turned and left.
This trip to the Earth Flame Cave had been incredibly fruitful.
Not only did he successfully refine the True Greater Yang Fire as he had hoped, but he also harvested nearly a hundred stalks of Ninth-Grade Spirit Medicine.
With so many Spirit Medicines, Yang Xiao was confident he could refine twenty peak Level 9 Fire Element Pills. If he fused them in pairs, that would yield ten King-level Fire Essence Pills.
That was equivalent to the energy of ten Medicine Kings.
Unfortunately, they had no spiritual essence.
If he hadn't seen this Ancient Spirit Medicine, Yang Xiao would definitely have used these King-level Fire Essence Pills to break through.
But now...
He wouldn't.
He didn't even plan to use all these Spirit Medicines to refine Fire Element Pills.
That would be too wasteful.
And too time-consuming.
Before, he had no choice. Now that he did, he would, of course, make the best use of his resources.
For example, he could refine some Flood Dragon King Pills. They could easily enhance the Physical Strength of his ten young Demon Flood Dragons and even give them a chance to generate Flood Dragon Qi.
From that, he could comprehend the Flood Dragon Divine Technique.
There were also Bright Heart Pills.
They could make one's Spiritual Power more refined and pure.
Which was of great benefit to cultivation.
As he came into contact with higher and higher levels of Spirit Medicine, the accumulated knowledge from Yang Xiao's previous life finally had a use.
This made Yang Xiao very happy.
Before he knew it, he had exited the Earth Flame Cave.
The moment he stepped out of the Earth Flame Cave, he saw Qin Rufeng, dressed in white.
Qin Rufeng was overjoyed to see him.
(PS: Still short a few, but I'm updating for now. Please keep favoriting the novel! The growth is too slow, much slower than yesterday.)