Chapter 155: Seven-Star Consecutive Arrows

So many spiritual treasures? Yang Xiao was extremely surprised. It was hard to tell whether Lin Lang had refined them himself or acquired them through other means. However, judging by the quantity, it was virtually impossible for him to have forged so many spiritual treasures on his own. Unlike Yang Xiao, who could casually conjure a spiritual treasure at will, forging even a single one clearly required a vast amount of time and an abundance of materials. The most plausible explanation was that Lin Lang simply had a penchant for collecting treasures, and had either purchased or plundered them from other cultivators.

However, despite their large number, most of these spiritual treasures were only of low grade. There were merely two or three hundred middle-grade treasures, and fewer than a hundred high-grade ones.

Though treasures were abundant, treasures of this caliber no longer held much appeal for Yang Xiao. Therefore, he merely observed them without any intention of taking one just yet. Due to the special restrictions governing the Spirit Gathering Array, only a single treasure could be removed from this place. Thus, he had to be extremely cautious when making his choice.

Having grown accustomed to the second tier, Yang Xiao intended to venture into the third tier. It was obvious that the finer treasures should be located within the remaining two tiers. Even if he could not linger long in the third tier, simply catching a glimpse of the treasures housed within—and perhaps taking one if a suitable match presented itself—was an opportunity worth seizing.

Furthermore, Yang Xiao discovered that the violent spiritual energy within the Spirit Gathering Array offered remarkable benefits to his cultivation. Not only was he actively absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy, but his cultivation realm was also showing signs of a breakthrough, and even his Nine-Turn Golden Body exhibited portents of advancement.

If he ventured into the next tier for further tempering, there was a good chance both aspects would achieve a breakthrough—a benefit difficult to attain through bitter cultivation in the outside world. A successful breakthrough would undoubtedly be a cause for great joy.

Having finalized his plan, Yang Xiao walked directly toward the portal, flickered his figure, and stepped into the third tier.

Meanwhile, Lin Hao was struck with utter astonishment. Struggling immensely just to cope with the spiritual pressure surrounding him in the second tier, he never expected that Yang Xiao would actually be able to enter the third tier.

It felt like seeing a ghost, causing Lin Hao to abruptly realize that although his cultivation realm surpassed Yang Xiao's, in a genuine duel he was now utterly mismatched against this man. Yang Xiao was simply too formidable, having ascended to a towering existence he could only look up to.

Outside the Spirit Gathering Array, Lin Ke and the others also noticed the third beam of spiritual light ascending, indicating that someone had entered the third tier.

Who on earth has entered the third tier? This is impossible. Logic dictates that only Heavenly Circulation realm cultivators like myself would dare to challenge the third tier; Qi Condensation realm cultivators simply lack such capability. Lin Ke was extremely perplexed by this.

Could it be that kid Yang Xiao who entered the third tier? At this moment, Feng Ye and his companions had not departed. Clearly, although they had failed and lacked the qualifications to enter the Spirit Gathering Array, they still wished to observe how the disciples of the Feng family fared within the array, and what treasures they might bring out.

If anyone possesses the ability to enter the third tier, it can only be Yang Xiao alone. Lin Ke muttered to himself, guessing aloud. Evidently, among everyone who entered the array, while Lin Hao possessed the highest cultivation, his foundation was unsteady and insufficient for the third tier. Only Yang Xiao possessed an exceptionally solid foundation complemented by a quite formidable defensive cultivation art. Under such circumstances, entering the third tier was within the realm of possibility, though he surely could not last long inside. Lin Ke quickly pieced together a rough estimate of the situation within the array.

However, Lin Ke's conjecture was not entirely accurate this time. Yang Xiao had originally assumed he would not be able to persist long in the third tier either, and had entered solely with the intent of tempering himself. Yet once inside, he gritted his teeth and pressed on. At that moment, his cultivation suddenly surged, advancing to the sixth level of the Qi Condensation realm, while his Nine-Turn Golden Body achieved another breakthrough, entering the initial success stage of the third turn. Consequently, the speed at which he absorbed spiritual energy accelerated considerably.

Yet that was not the primary factor. As he experimented with alternative methods to absorb the ambient spiritual energy, he made a sudden new discovery: the lightning mark could also absorb the surrounding spiritual energy. Although the absorption rate was not particularly rapid, the most efficient method of all turned out to be the Giant Spirit Art that Yang Xiao practiced.

To his astonishment, after testing it out, he found that the Giant Spirit Art was capable of absorbing spiritual energy, and at a remarkably fast pace. When the Giant Spirit Art was unleashed, it manifested as a giant. Because of this massive physical form, even though the absorption rate per unit of area was identical to his normal body, the greatly expanded surface area allowed it to absorb spiritual energy far faster than Yang Xiao could manage on his own.

The third tier was originally saturated with spiritual energy, but after being devoured by the Giant Spirit Art, it grew noticeably thinner. Under normal circumstances, Yang Xiao would have been restricted to seated meditation, utterly unable to move under the crushing weight of the ambient spiritual energy. However, with the energy thinned out and his own cultivation enhanced, he gradually adapted to the environment of the third tier, able to walk about against the surrounding pressure.

This was truly bizarre. In the eyes of Lin Ke and the others, only Heavenly Circulation realm cultivators should have been able to move freely within the third tier, yet Yang Xiao had accomplished the exact same feat.

Moreover, having absorbed such vast quantities of spiritual energy, the Giant Spirit Art underwent several transformations, becoming denser and taller, with its might appearing to increase significantly.

At this moment, Yang Xiao released his sand beast, allowing it to absorb some of the surrounding spiritual energy as well. This proved quite beneficial for the beast's cultivation progress. Its power seemingly grew by leaps and bounds; even if it had not yet reached the late stage of the Qi Condensation realm, it was likely not far off, keeping pace roughly with Yang Xiao's own cultivation.

Having adapted to the surrounding spiritual energy, Yang Xiao began to wander around. It was then that he discovered dozens of semi-supreme spiritual treasures mounted on the four walls, every single one of them exceptionally precious. However, Yang Xiao's eyes locked onto just one of them—or rather, a single set disguised as one.

It consisted of seven arrow-like magical treasures. Below the treasures were their name and a brief description: the Seven Stars Linked Arrows, capable of consecutive launches and possessing immense might. Most importantly, their magical power consumption was remarkably low; even when all seven were combined, the required magical power was far less than that of other semi-supreme spiritual treasures.

Low consumption coupled with devastating lethality—this was naturally a perfect fit for Yang Xiao's current needs. Consequently, he decided to claim them and take them out of the Spirit Gathering Array, thereby adding a rather fine set of magical treasures to his arsenal. (To be continued.)