There was no denying it—being escorted by a Dou Ancestor elder was absurdly fast. If Xiao Yun had gone to Falling Thunder Valley on his own, it would've taken him over half an hour. But with Elder Su carrying him, it took barely a few minutes to arrive at their destination.
Suspended in mid-air, Xiao Yun looked down at the valley beneath him—and involuntarily sucked in a sharp breath.
The entire sky above the mountain valley looked as though it had been draped in black velvet, streaked with flickering lightning. Thunderbolts continually crashed downward with terrifying force, striking the valley floor like heavenly punishment.
Flashes of white light danced in the depths of the gorge. Thunder rumbled like an army of ten thousand warhorses charging through, deafening in its might. In the eerie flashes of lightning, the dark valley appeared even more bottomless and sinister—just looking at it made one's heart tremble.
It felt like at any moment, the entire valley would be obliterated by a barrage of thunder. Every other sound was drowned beneath the crackle and roar of the storm. Only the occasional gust of wind, whistling through the canyon, could steal away a sliver of that terrifying atmosphere.
"This is Falling Thunder Valley," Elder Su said cheerfully, holding Xiao Yun by the collar like a sack of potatoes. "So, still planning to train in there?"
Xiao Yun swallowed hard and did his best to calm himself. After a long pause, he replied, "Y-Yes! I mean, I'll just train on the outer edge… that shouldn't be too lethal, right?"
"Good. Then off you go. I've got to head back and oversee the Blazing Sky Qi Refining Tower. You'll find your own way back to the Inner Academy later."
With a pat on Xiao Yun's shoulder, Elder Su gently dropped him in front of the valley, then vanished into the sky with a flicker of light.
Xiao Yun stared at the elder's rapidly disappearing silhouette and took a deep breath. He gave himself a silent pep talk, steeled his nerves, and shot toward the outer edge of the valley in a streak of light.
Finding a suitably large boulder, he sat down cross-legged and pulled out two items from his spatial ring: the "Ten Thousand Thunders Body Tempering Technique" scroll and a shimmering golden thunderflower.
The first page of the scroll was inked in fierce calligraphy, almost as if each stroke crackled with electricity:
"To temper the body with heavenly thunder is to defy the will of the heavens. A single misstep, and one shall be reduced to ashes!"
Xiao Yun clicked his tongue at the melodrama but didn't dwell on it. Instead, he began circulating his Dou Qi according to the scroll's instructions, guiding it smoothly through his meridians.
Once he confirmed the flow was stable, he didn't hesitate—he picked up the golden thunderflower and tossed it into his mouth.
There was no chewing. The moment it hit his tongue, the flower disintegrated into a streak of golden lightning, which raced down his throat and into his body. In response, his qi cyclone surged, flooding through his meridians to meet the golden current.
Scarlet Dou Qi wrapped around the lightning, just as the scroll directed, carrying it into deeper channels within his body.
As time passed, Xiao Yun completed the first full cycle of the technique. By now, tiny arcs of electricity were beginning to crackle along his skin. From a distance, he looked a bit like a human lightbulb—albeit a slightly twitchy one.
BOOM!
The sky answered.
Bolts of silver lightning, like serpents of pure destruction, gathered above him. They twisted and danced through the air before converging into a single colossal thunderbolt that came crashing down, enveloping Xiao Yun in a blinding pillar of lightning.
"AAAAHH—now this is what I call power!!" Xiao Yun howled through clenched teeth, his face twisted in pain and exhilaration.
The sheer force of the thunder shredded his robes, revealing lean muscles and pale skin, which were quickly scorched by the electric onslaught. His scarlet Dou Qi surged outward, intertwining with the silver lightning, slithering across his back like glowing snakes. With each jolt, deep blue thunder marks etched themselves into his skin.
"Tsk tsk… That brat really is using the headmaster's 'Ten Thousand Thunders Body Tempering Technique,' huh? Only that madman would come up with a training method that involves luring lightning to beat yourself senseless."
Hovering high above, Elder Su had circled back and was quietly watching Xiao Yun's insane endeavor.
"I guess I won't have to step in after all. Looks like the kid can handle it."
For a while, Elder Su hovered there, his eyes filled with a rare hint of admiration.
"He's still so young, yet already able to endure this kind of pain… What a little freak. Give it time—he might just reach the headmaster's level someday."
A gust of wind swept through the sky. Elder Su's voice echoed faintly before his presence disappeared completely.
Xiao Yun, of course, was oblivious to all of this. All he could feel was the overwhelming, mind-melting pain, as if his entire body were being torn apart and rebuilt from lightning. His consciousness had been reduced to a single goal: survive.
His Dou Qi followed the prescribed paths through his body almost mechanically. He couldn't afford to think of anything else.
Time became meaningless. Whether a second or an hour passed, he had no way of knowing. Eventually, gritting his teeth against the torment, Xiao Yun forced his consciousness inward.
The moment he did, the state of his body revealed itself to him. Every single meridian was riddled with tiny arcs of silver lightning—wild, untamed, and chaotic.
Fortunately, the golden thunderflower's energy had long since transformed into a protective barrier around his meridians, shielding them from being completely fried.
Thanks to this protection, the pain lessened just enough for Xiao Yun to finally attempt to control the lightning.
Unfortunately, trying to control the thunderforce was like trying to wrestle a rabid ox into a pen. The first attempt ended in complete failure.
But he didn't give up. Again and again, he tried, Dou Qi surging and retreating like waves crashing on the shore.
Failure. Failure. And still more failure…
Until, finally—something changed. Xiao Yun's heart jolted with excitement as he sensed the chaotic thunder energy stop resisting. Slowly, it began to flow along his Dou Qi's path, obediently following his guidance.
Step by step, like coaxing a wild animal, he led it through his body. One thread of success seemed to draw in others, and before long, more and more of the thunderforce began merging together.
Eventually, all the lightning within his body converged. The originally silver arcs now shimmered faintly with gold.
But the moment that golden hue appeared, the lightning's power surged again—more violent, more unstable. Even the protective golden shield around his meridians began to flicker and dim.
The thunderflower's effect was clearly fading.
Still, Xiao Yun didn't panic. With utmost care, he continued channeling the fused thunderforce through his body.
With each pass, his control improved. As the lightning completed a full circulation through every meridian, Xiao Yun suddenly felt something stir deep within his body—as though an ancient force had awakened.
Every part of him—muscle, bone, organ, blood—flickered with electricity. The thunderforce hovered above his qi cyclone, being slowly absorbed into every inch of his body.
If anyone had been watching, they would have seen something terrifying: Xiao Yun's tiny figure sitting atop the stone, his skin scorched black like charcoal, faint wisps of smoke curling from his head.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
In the eerie silence of the valley floor, his charred body suddenly pulsed with powerful heartbeats. Each one boomed like a drumbeat of thunder, like lightning composed into a symphony of flesh.
Then, with a flash, a bolt of radiant lightning exploded from his body, forming a glowing silver barrier around him. Arcs of electricity danced across its surface, cutting him off from the outside world entirely.