Chapter 1254: Little Nine, Profound Thunder Refines Profound Pill

Boom! Boom! Boom!

And just as Lin Feng, slightly nervous, stood at a distance watching, deep in the thunder sea the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, at this moment, on its massive body, kept bursting forth dazzling golden thunder blasts.

Roar! Roar! Roar!

Accompanied by the thunder blasts that made Lin Feng feel a bit startled exploding on that Nine Profound Golden Thunder, its huge body twisted uncontrollably, and its gaping maw emitted a series of mournful roars and low growls.

At the same time, the surrounding black demonic thunders, after sensing the terrifying blast at the center of the thunder pool, all surged toward the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, then circled around the massive golden thunder dragon.

Even though they lack full spiritual intelligence, they instinctively sensed that the Nine Profound Golden Thunder was now at a crucial moment.

And such a moment might be exactly when they are most needed.

During this Nine Profound Golden Dragon's Spirit Gathering, several days slipped away silently like flowing water.

And as time passed, the power of the thunder blasts on the Nine Profound Golden Dragon grew increasingly terrifying.

Meanwhile, the energy accumulated within the Nine Profound Golden Dragon over countless years, at this moment, shifted from being its confidence against foes to a terrifying self‑directed onslaught.

By now, with that astonishing amount of energy exploding, even Lin Feng dares not rush forward.

And the ferocity of the backlash the Nine Profound Golden Thunder must endure to condense spiritual intelligence far exceeded his expectations.

In this situation, he can only have Xiao Ling ready to step forward at any time to draw the energy from the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's body, helping increase the odds of successful Spirit Gathering.

Of course, the cowardly Xiao Ling, seeing the backlash of the Nine Profound Golden Thunder's Spirit Gathering was too terrifying, originally tried to shirk with all sorts of excuses, but after the irate Lin Feng lifted her up and beat her until her little bottom swelled to twice its size, she promptly cried and agreed to support the Nine Profound Golden Dragon at any moment.

As for the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, its expression grew weary with each explosion.

After all, it can still devise ways to fend off external attacks, but when faced with self‑detonating energy from within, it has no recourse but to tough it out on its own.

Clap!

The next moment, under Lin Feng's solemn gaze, a terrifying golden thunder blast about one‑fifth the size of the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's body violently erupted on its massive surface.

In an instant, a golden thunder arc brimming with destructive power burst out from the dragon's interior, shooting straight toward the distant void.

And the frantic streaks of golden thunder along the way made onlookers' hearts race with terror!

"The Nine Profound Golden Thunder, its power reduced by Xiao Ling's absorption to only a three‑star Dou Saint, already has such a massive backlash from Spirit Gathering; I truly don't know what the scene would be like when the Bodhi Ancient Tree performs its Spirit Gathering,"

Watching the continuously raging golden thunder, Lin Feng couldn't help but sigh.

Roar!

And just as the former reflected, the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, confronting this internal backlash explosion, even though its body is an extremely robust being, now struggles to endure, letting out a wail even harsher than all its previous roars.

However, although the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's aura has become far more languid than at the start, within its body during the repeated explosions, its dragon eyes—previously almost emotionless—now slowly begin to exude a trace of spiritual energy.

The emergence of this spiritual energy also makes the otherwise lifeless Nine Profound Golden Thunder appear to have a hint of vitality in its eyes.

These slight changes, though hardly noticeable, could not escape Lin Feng, who possesses the Heavenly Realm Great Perfection Soul; upon seeing that glimmer of spiritual energy, a spark of excitement flashed across his face.

After all, if this Nine Profound Golden Dragon succeeds in Spirit Gathering, it would undoubtedly become a terrifying entity.

Thus, Lin Feng would also gain a powerful subordinate, a benefit that is undeniably huge!

As for Xiao Ling, who was ordered by her master to be ready to support the Nine Profound Golden Thunder at any time, seeing the other's Spirit Gathering gaining momentum, she immediately leapt up excitedly.

At this moment, she was beyond excited.

Boom! Boom!

However, just as swirls of spiritual energy rose in the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's massive dragon eyes, the internal backlash grew ever stronger, and at this moment, a heart‑pounding low thunder blast roared continuously from its body.

Each terrifying explosion alone could cause a six‑star Peak Dou Saint‑level strongman to collapse on the spot.

At the same time, under the relentless internal explosions, the spiritual energy in the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's eyes was violently scattered.

"Didn't expect that after Xiao Ling siphoned so much energy, the backlash of Spirit Gathering would still be this horrifying. No wonder the Bodhi Ancient Tree, after such long ages of growth, still cannot condense spiritual intelligence. If it's the same for it, that backlash force would make even Dou Emperor‑level strongmen have to treat it with caution,"

Seeing the hard‑won spiritual energy of the Nine Profound Golden Dragon being shattered by these explosions, Lin Feng's expression shifted from excitement to solemnity.

Given the current situation, it seems the Nine Profound Golden Thunder may indeed fail to condense spiritual intelligence.

Thinking this, Lin Feng instantly turned his head, looked at the pained Xiao Ling clutching her own bottom, and said, "Little girl, hurry and absorb some of the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's energy to help it ascend. Let's keep it at a one‑star Dou Saint level of power."

"Oh."

With the pain in her bottom still lingering, Xiao Ling dared not evade the task any longer; she pursed her lips and carefully summoned a five‑layer black flame barrier to shield herself.

After meticulously checking for any oversight, she grimaced and leapt toward the center of the thunder pool, where the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, its aura rapidly waning due to internal energy loss, lay.

And a thousand‑zhang distance is but a blink away for a seven‑star Dou Saint like Xiao Ling.

However, once she hovered before the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, the thunder shockwaves generated by its continual internal explosions kept striking the shield in front of Xiao Ling.

The immense force instantly shattered two layers of her barrier.

Fortunately, the girl was cautious enough; after two layers broke, she still retained three layers of protection behind.

Moreover, as the flames within her surged, the broken shield was quickly repaired.

Yet even as Xiao Ling repaired, the explosions inside the Nine Profound Golden Dragon persisted; the golden thunder, propelled by the blast shockwaves, continuously shattered her black flame barrier, engaging in a relentless tug‑of‑war with her.

Seeing this, Xiao Ling dared not waste time and shouted at the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, "Great Golden Dragon, I'll keep siphoning your energy to boost your chances of condensing spiritual intelligence; don't lose your mind and attack recklessly."

Roar!

As soon as the former finished speaking, the Nine Profound Golden Thunder let out an extremely feeble roar toward the heavens, answering the girl.

Xiao Ling, seeing this, immediately pointed a tiny finger, and a black flame shot out from her fingertip, piercing the scales on the Nine Profound Golden Thunder's forehead and entering its body.

The black flame, upon entering the golden dragon's interior, rapidly spread everywhere, devouring all energy it touched.

Accompanying Xiao Ling's action, Lin Feng, far away, suddenly felt a surge of energy materialize within him, which instantly merged into the earlier golden thunder dragon.

As for the Nine Profound Golden Dragon, under the relentless consumption of the black flame, its aura began to plummet once more.

In the blink of an eye, it had already dropped to one star.

"Alright, big fellow, try gathering spirit again!"

Soon after, Xiao Ling saw the Nine Profound Golden Dragon's aura had successfully fallen from three‑star Dou Saint to one star, so she swiftly withdrew the black flame from its body and darted back to Lin Feng's side.

That sight seemed as if a delay of even a second would have been fatal.

And Lin Feng, seeing the girl's astonishingly cowardly look, couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

He didn't understand why the Pure Lotus Demonic Fire up ahead, so fierce, after merging, ended up producing such a big coward.

"Roar!"

Feeling the huge chunk of energy that had vanished again within his body, a flash of resolve instantly passed through the Nine‑Xuan Golden Dragon's eyes, then it let out another long howl toward the heavens, and thereafter hastened the pace of Spirit Gathering.

At the same time, due to the reduction of energy, the backlash force of Spirit Gathering also plummeted like a cliff.

After all, the Nine‑Xuan Golden Dragon now had almost no energy left inside, so how could that backlash force ignite the energy within the Golden Dragon's body?

"Aang! Aang!"

With the hindrance of the backlash force gone, the aura in the Nine‑Xuan Golden Dragon's massive eyes grew ever denser, yet the explosion within its golden dragon body became increasingly feeble.

After all, lacking the support of energy, this slight backlash could no longer affect the Nine‑Xuan Golden Dragon at all.

"Buzz!"

As for the Nine‑Xuan Golden Thunder at the center of the Thunder Pool, accompanied by the aura in its eyes gradually thickening, its size also flashed a golden gleam in Lin Feng's expectant gaze, then it swiftly shrank smaller and smaller.

In the end, amid a burst of intense, dazzling light, the massive golden thunder dragon, a thousand zhang tall, finally transformed into the form of an eleven‑ or twelve‑year‑old blonde little girl.

Perhaps due to her natural upbringing, the little girl was exquisitely delicate and cute, like a porcelain doll.

"Whimper!"

The moment the little girl appeared, she immediately opened her mouth and let out a raw, nascent sound.

As soon as that sound was emitted, in an instant the surrounding sea of black demonic thunder, as if receiving a command, surged rapidly across the entire thunder sea.

In the next moment, countless black demonic thunders surged together, then rushed forward in succession toward the blonde little girl!

However, when those black demonic thunders touched the girl's body, they instantly transformed from coarse black lightning into fine strands of black electric current, which then infiltrated her body.

As the black demonic thunders penetrated, the girl's Dou Qi strength, originally only at the initial Dou Saint level, suddenly surged upward at breakneck speed.

In less than the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the little girl, under Lin Feng's and Xiao Ling's astonished gazes, abruptly rose to Four‑Star Dou Saint and continued to climb steadily!

"I didn't expect this kid to have such a trick—being able to absorb these black demonic thunders to restore strength."

Observing the continual rise, the blonde little girl had already recovered to Five‑Star Dou Saint in the blink of an eye, prompting Lin Feng to exclaim in amazement.

And as the girl's power increased, her body also gradually grew larger.

When she eventually broke through to Six‑Star Dou Saint, she had already become a girl roughly the same size as Xiao Ling.

However, as the blonde girl's strength recovered to Six‑Star Dou Saint, her rate of improvement gradually slowed.

And this kind of improvement speed made Xiao Ling look utterly envious.

When she first raised her strength, she had been slowly devouring various pills and heavenly treasures, taking several months before she could advance from Five‑Star Dou Saint to Seven‑Star Dou Saint.

Yet this big golden dragon in transformed form managed, in less than a day, to recover from One‑Star Dou Saint to Six‑Star Dou Saint.

"Boom!"

And while Xiao Ling was seething with envy and jealousy, the distant blonde girl, continuously fed by the surrounding black demonic thunders, forcibly restored herself to her original Seven‑Star Dou Saint strength amid successive surges of airwaves.

Though each of those black demonic thunders possessed only about Three‑Star Dou Saint strength, their sheer number was overwhelming.

Yet this continuous influx, when combined, produced an energy that was terrifyingly massive!

As for the blonde girl, after her power reached the Seven‑Star pinnacle, she instantly opened her golden eyes and, with a touch of helplessness, cast a glance at the surrounding black thunder.

Though the thunder was abundant, it was now utterly impossible for them to help her ascend to Eight‑Star Dou Saint.

Unless she can obtain the energy she previously lost.

Realizing this, she immediately gave up further absorbing the local black demonic thunders, then darted forward and, in the blink of an eye, flew to Lin Feng's side.

After a moment of silence, she seemed to find the words, and with a very raw tone said, "Master."

"Hehe, not bad. I didn't expect you could, by relying on this place's thunder power, ascend to the Seven‑Star pinnacle Dou Saint. It seems you still don't have a name, do you?"

At that point, Lin Feng paused briefly, then said, "In that case, from now on I'll call you Xiao Jiu." As he spoke, he reached out and gently stroked the girl's soft golden hair.

"Yes, master."

Hearing that, the blonde girl showed no hesitation, bowed and accepted the name Lin Feng had given her.

Seeing this, Lin Feng's affection deepened instantly, and he smiled lightly, "From now on, stay by my side."

"As you command."

Receiving the command, the golden‑haired—no, Xiao Jiu—immediately gave a slight nod, then turned into a streak of golden thunder that shot toward Lin Feng, subsequently forming a few‑centimeter‑long golden thunder‑dragon pattern that adhered to Lin Feng's arm.

"Hm."

And Xiao Ling, upon seeing this scene, instantly puffed up her little face, looking a bit jealous.

After all, until now she had been the only one who could stay by the master's side every day.

Not even the master's wives had this honor.

But now, a little fox spirit has appeared to snatch the treasured spot she held in her master's heart—who could tolerate that?

Yet, seeing that the little fox spirit had already entered her master's body, Xiao Ling, with her anger nowhere to vent, could only sulk, kick her foot, then her body turned into a black flame that swiftly slipped into Lin Feng's body.

The latter, upon realizing he had obtained the Void Thunder Pool's most important treasure, immediately asked in his mind, "Xiao Jiu, if you leave, will this Void Thunder Pool not disappear?"

"Master, it won't. I am a creation nurtured by this Void Thunder Pool, not something I formed. After I depart, it will continue to operate as before; only that, without my presence, this place will no longer be so tranquil, the thunders will devour each other again, and eventually a new Nine‑Xuan Golden Thunder will be born."

Hearing Lin Feng's question, Xiao Jiu immediately relayed the information about the Void Thunder Pool.

Upon hearing that, Lin Feng lightly nodded his head.

Realizing that this change wouldn't greatly harm the Void Thunder Pool, he didn't linger any longer; instead, he transformed into a flash of light and swiftly darted away from the Void Thunder Pool.

And as they departed, the black demonic thunder pool that had lost Xiao Jiu's suppression suddenly saw the atmosphere change abruptly.

Driven by instinct, these black demonic thunders greedily roamed, trying to swallow other thunders to evolve themselves.

"This place is about done."

As for Lin Feng, after leaving the Void Thunder Pool, he immediately sped through the void space for several hours, eventually arriving at a region deep within the void space; gazing at the pitch‑black area devoid of any human presence, he promptly nodded in satisfaction.

After all, when he refines Ninth‑Grade Xuan Dan pills, it's better to stay far from the Void Thunder Pool.

There are too many thunders inside; if he succeeds in refining, those thunders could be drawn by the pill‑thunder and fuse with it, and he fears the pill might not withstand the reinforced thunder.

At the same time, he will also become extremely passive in the face of this situation.

However, upon arriving here, Lin Feng did not immediately start refining pills; instead, he released his soul power and carefully scanned the surroundings.

After discovering no traces of other living beings around, he immediately flicked his finger, took out the three Dragon King puppets, and calmly said, "You three, spread out to the periphery and stay on guard, preventing anyone from intruding."

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Upon receiving the order, the three sturdy dark-gray puppets instantly stepped into the void, their bodies shooting explosively toward different directions, then taking positions a thousand li away, strictly carrying out Lin Feng's order, vigilantly scanning back and forth to prevent anyone from appearing.

After Lin Feng finished these, he then moved his mind, flicked his finger, and shot out a blinding golden light.

"Boom—!"

Accompanying the emission of that golden light, instantly, the surrounding void space emitted a tremendous boom.

As for that golden light, meeting the storm and rising, within the blink of an eye its size frenziedly expanded, instantly swelling into a golden thunder dragon several thousand zhang in length.

Upon the huge body of this golden thunder dragon, lightning incessantly flickered, and at the same time, the thunderous booms produced by lightning strikes on its body stirred up wave after wave of thunderstorms in the sky.

Gazing at the golden thunder dragon in the sky emanating a terrifying pressure, Lin Feng's expression involuntarily twitched slightly.

This thing gathered the vast majority of the energy of Xiao Jiu from one-star to seven-star Dou Saint; even he dared not underestimate it.

"Roar!"

Just as the former felt some apprehension toward this thunder dragon, the latter madly roared in the sky above him, its enormous golden dragon eyes devoid of any emotion.

After all, it is merely a pure energy, not the Xiao Jiu who, after Spirit Gathering, possesses complete sentience; it fundamentally lacks even a shred of wisdom.

However, Lin Feng, watching the thunder dragon ravaging the sky, soon curled the corner of his mouth into a smile.

The energy within this thunder dragon is extremely violent and rich; if it were before, he might still have needed to expend some effort to handle it.

But now, with Xiao Jiu by his side, dealing with this kind of thunder-type spirit object requires no action from him at all.

Thinking this through, Lin Feng immediately transmitted: "Xiao Jiu, settle it."

"Yes."

Upon receiving the order, Xiao Jiu's slightly cold, maiden-like voice echoed within his body.

As soon as the words fell, an aura even more violent than that of the previous golden dragon suddenly burst forth from within Lin Feng's body.

Subsequently, a golden light shot out from within Lin Feng's body, and in the blink of an eye it transformed into a golden thunder dragon phantom several times larger than the previous thunder dragon, standing between heaven and earth!

The appearance of this phantom is extremely similar to that of the preceding thunder dragon.

However, the rolling pressure emanating from its body is several times stronger than the thunder dragon formed by Xiao Ling absorbing Xiao Jiu's energy.

Merely gazing at that enormous phantom causes the thunder dragon condensed from energy to feel a trembling sensation rising from the depths of its soul.

This feeling is as if encountering the emperor of thunder; only by prostrating can one avoid the harm of that pressure.

Moreover, setting aside that this thunder dragon's energy originates from Xiao Jiu, although both are Nine Profound Golden Thunder, Xiao Jiu is a Seven-Star Dou Saint–level Nine Profound Golden Thunder formed by Spirit Gathering, whereas this thunder dragon is far inferior.

"Roar!"

Beneath that immensely huge golden thunder dragon phantom, even the mindless golden thunder dragon becomes like a mouse encountering a cat, no longer as violent and arrogant as before.

Even the brilliant lightning on its massive body quietly dimmed considerably.

However, the next moment, the golden dragon phantom, looking down from above, suddenly extended a pair of dragon claws resembling mountains, and grabbed fiercely at the thunder dragon below.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Seeing the giant claw approach, the golden thunder dragon, though terrified to the extreme, under intense survival instinct instantly raised its scales, then opened its massive mouth and spat out numerous huge golden thunder balls several hundred zhang in size, which fiercely struck the giant claw, producing a deafening boom.

As the golden thunder balls collided with the giant claw, instantly, golden lightning arcs frenziedly flickered across the sky, illuminating the surrounding dark void as if it were daytime.

Although the thunder balls' attack power is not bad, against the giant claw they are like a thin membrane beneath a woman's—ripped apart in an instant.

Then the giant claw, clutching an extremely violent pressure, swooped down swiftly and precisely seized the thunder dragon's body.

"Screech!"

The body was suddenly seized; the golden thunder dragon, sensing imminent danger, frantically struggled, and instantly golden lightning continually struck the claw, producing a crackling sound.

Yet facing these lightning attacks, the giant claw remained unmoving, instead gripping ever more tightly.

"Boom—!"

With Xiao Jiu's sustained effort, shortly thereafter a deafening explosion rang from the depths of the void, and that thousand-zhang-long golden thunder dragon was directly crushed to pieces by Xiao Jiu.

Upon the thunder dragon's explosion, its massive body instantly turned into a large sheet of viscous golden energy liquid floating in the sky, emitting a matchless, violent energy fluctuation and flashing with streaks of golden thunder.

"Go!"

Seeing the golden dragon settled, Lin Feng immediately flicked his finger and shot out a black flame.

That flame, also meeting the storm and rising, in the blink of an eye became a huge black fire cauldron several hundred zhang in size.

Once the cauldron formed, the lid instantly flung open, and a powerful suction surged within.

In a moment, the terrifying suction drew the sky‑filling golden energy liquid ocean over, and it poured down like golden rivers from the horizon, completely falling into the lower black fire cauldron.

And upon seeing the last drop of golden energy liquid fall into the cauldron, the cauldron's violent black flame instantly ignited out of thin air, frantically hammering the energy liquid suspended in the medicine cauldron that flickered with faint golden thunder.

Of course, while hammering the energy liquid transformed from the golden thunder dragon, Lin Feng, not idle beside the cauldron, waved his hand and tens of thousands of medicinal ingredients flew out of his storage ring, forming a vast sea of various medicines hovering in the sky, exuding an astonishingly rich medicinal aroma.

"Nine Profound Pill–grade Thunder Tribulation Pill, as long as we can let these thunderbolts obediently enter the medicine cauldron to be refined, its refinement difficulty is undoubtedly much lower than that of ordinary Mystic Pills. I hope I can succeed this time; otherwise I'll have to think of ways to boost Zi Yan's strength later. After all, without enough hands to hide the Stone Realm, that won't do!"

As soon as the words fell, Lin Feng immediately waved his hand, controlling the medicinal sea in the sky to swirl around the fire cauldron, and finally a thousand medicinal herbs instantly detached and shot swiftly into the lower black fire cauldron.

After all, his current soul power cannot simultaneously refine tens of thousands of medicinal herbs.

Therefore, he could only refine them in batches, as he did when he was still weak.

The instant these medicinal herbs entered the cauldron, the surrounding violent black alien fire surged upward, incessantly roasting them with its horrifying high temperature.

Of course, since this is the first time refining a proper Nine Profound Pill, Lin Feng dared not let Xiao Ling, who lacks relevant data and experience, take action; instead he chose to do it himself.

After all, no matter what, he possesses far more pill‑refining experience than Xiao Ling; doing it himself will greatly increase the success rate.

After all, pill refining isn't simply about who has stronger flame control; it's a comprehensive assessment of familiarity with medicinal ingredients, refining experience, flame control, and so on.

And in Lin Feng's such wholehearted refining, who knows how much time has passed.

Once these medicinal herbs had been successfully refined into essence liquid, he immediately moved his mind, swiftly controlling the variegated medicinal essences to merge into the golden energy liquid transformed from the Nine Profound Golden Thunder.

At the same time, as more and more herb essences were poured into those golden liquids, the color of the energy liquid instantly became mottled.

But this scene did not catch Lin Feng's attention; after the refinement was complete, he immediately directed the next batch of herbs into the medicine cauldron and repeated the process.

Thus, for the following period, deep within the originally tranquil void, a massive fire cauldron floated in the distant heavens; the spreading jet‑black flames were so hot that even the Seven Star Dou Saints dared not approach recklessly.

Within those flames, a continuous roar of fire blared all day, occasionally interspersed with faint thunderous hums, making one feel restless and agitated!

Nevertheless, Lin Feng felt no discomfort in such an environment; instead, he devoted himself to refining pills for nearly a month.

But as time kept passing, when the refining reached about half a month, Lin Feng, who had waited statue‑like for such a long time, finally looked up at the massive fire cauldron in the sky, and his lips curled slightly upward.

At this moment, inside the fire cauldron before him, the colorful energy liquid formed from the Nine‑Mysterious Golden Thunder and tens of thousands of merged strands had completely vanished.

Remaining at the center of where the energy liquid had been was a fist‑sized, gold‑colored pill that radiated a brilliance as pure as the finest gold, quietly floating there.

Yet on close inspection, one can see that the space around this pill constantly seeped golden bolts of thunder, each emitting a crisp cracking sound as the thunder shattered the air (End of chapter).