Preparing to Absorb

Li Yi nodded slightly, quickly forming a cultivation seal with his hands. As he moved, the black Dou Qi in his Dantian Qi Sea rapidly spread throughout his body's meridians, wrapping them in a thin layer of energy. Excess Dou Qi even spilled out, enveloping him completely. "Now! Wrap the Dou Qi seed!" The Serpent Venerable commanded in a deep voice.

Li Yi grunted, changing the seals in his hands, as a stream of blood-colored Dou Qi surged out, entwining around the vibrant Dou Qi seed, gradually pulling it towards him. As he did so, the previously quiescent Dou Qi seed started to violently pulsate, showing signs of resistance.

Li Yi, not daring to be complacent, changed the seals again. Three more streams of blood-colored Dou Qi burst forth, slowly drawing the Dou Qi seed closer. His eyes focused on the turbulent Dou Qi seed, the absorption process had begun.

"Hiss—" The Dou Qi seed continued to pulsate, resembling a mischievous child, but with Li Yi's Dou Qi infusion, it seemed to grow more violent, slowly expanding in size.

"What now, Old Coot?" Li Yi asked in a low voice.

"Due to its long dormancy, the Dou Qi seed is in a pseudo-death state. You need to activate it first for successful absorption. Act fast!" The Serpent Venerable instructed.

"Understood!" Li Yi responded, quickening his hand movements. Streams of black Dou Qi poured into the purple Dou Qi seed like a torrent. The Dou Qi seed swelled, and the once docile purple lightning began wildly dancing within the stone chamber, creating visible cracks in space. This sight even surprised The Serpent Venerable, who mumbled, "It feels like it's touching the edge of the rules. It seems that Dou Emperor died after failing to break through to Dou Venerable..."

Li Yi didn't let these words distract him, maintaining his hand movements. After infusing the last bit of Dou Qi, he changed his seals to recover the spent energy. The Dou Qi seed, now filled with immense Dou Qi, appeared "alive," stretching and expanding in the air, growing to fill half of the chamber. The purple lightning struck the walls and floor, leaving massive cracks.

"Alright! The Dou Qi seed is activated. Due to your Dou Qi imprint, you're the only one who can refine it, unless that dead Dou Emperor comes back to life. Pull it to you, quickly!" The Serpent Venerable urged.

Li Yi grunted, knowing this wasn't the time for hesitation. He changed his seals, and the blood-colored Dou Qi, initially just guiding the seed, now forcefully pulled it closer. Despite the seed's struggles, it couldn't resist due to Li Yi's Dou Qi imprint within it. The process was excruciatingly slow, like an ant crawling.

Li Yi strained to manipulate his Dou Qi, the vortex in his Dantian spinning rapidly. Every bit of Dou Qi he expended was used for this laborious task. Soon, his face turned pale, and he was sweating profusely. Finally, after an unknown amount of time, the Dou Qi seed was brought before him. His pale face under the flashing lights appeared somewhat eerie and ferocious.

Seeing that Li Yi wasn't harmed by the seed's backlash, The Serpent Venerable breathed a sigh of relief. With a low shout, he released a stream of blood-colored Dou Qi, enveloping the large Dou Qi seed and slowly "prying" it open.

Once this step was completed, The Serpent Venerable's slightly ethereal face broke into a smile, "Reach in and grab the true Dou Qi seed, absorb it into your body, quickly! I can't hold on much longer!"

Hearing this, Li Yi's eyes narrowed, focusing on the Dou Qi seed. Amidst the dense and flickering electric lights, a small cluster of lightning seemed to shimmer quietly, not as wild as the surrounding lightning, but silently lurking within...

However, this lurking only made the inherent violent power within it more evident. Li Yi wondered if reaching into it might result in being struck by an electric arc. Despite this peculiar thought crossing his mind, Li Yi extended his hand without hesitation, slowly reaching towards the small cluster of lightning. Surprisingly, the wildly violent lightning seemed to sense its nemesis and slightly moved aside, creating just enough space for Li Yi's arm. As his hand touched the small lightning cluster, a piercing screech filled the air, deafeningly loud.

"Quickly, grab it!" The Serpent Venerable's voice trembled with fatigue, not even bothering with extra words. Li Yi slowly withdrew his hand, and as he did so, the surrounding lightning seemed to weaken but still flickered persistently. The tiny cluster of lightning in his palm, however, sent tingling shocks through his hand.

Seeing Li Yi's hand withdrawn, The Serpent Venerable grunted, his Dou Qi contracting to only a thin layer around the cluster of lightning. His slightly ethereal face showed a hint of a smile, "So far, we have succeeded... But the next step is crucial... Your body is too frail, and having only reached the first transformation of the Tianmo Jiubian, you barely meet the minimum requirements for absorbing a Dou Emperor's Dou Qi seed. At the moment of absorption, your body might just explode... But if you can refine it, the benefits are immense. So, the choice to absorb or not is yours."

Holding the Dou Qi seed, Li Yi smiled after a moment, "Old Coot, having come this far, how can I back down? Cultivation is defying the heavens; there's no room for too much consideration. If I miss this chance, I might never achieve anything, even in a hundred years."

The Serpent Venerable couldn't help but smile lightly, "In that case, I won't waste words. The process of absorbing this Dou Qi seed might differ from last time, but I will guide you through it, so just go ahead boldly... I believe with your resolve, this Dou Qi seed cannot escape."

"Hehe, I think so too!" Li Yi chuckled, lightly tossing the small cluster of lightning into his mouth. As the Dou Qi seed entered, Li Yi's pre-arranged Dou Qi was activated. Still, his body shook violently as if countless bolts of lightning were shooting out from every orifice. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his already pale face turning even more ashen.

But Li Yi persevered, rapidly changing his hand seals into a cultivation pose. The Serpent Venerable's expression changed slightly, understanding the immense pressure a Dou Emperor's Dou Qi seed placed on a Fighter's body and meridians. It was like trying to fit an ocean's water into a river; regardless of the river's breadth, it would inevitably overflow unless the flow matched the ocean's influx.

Li Yi grunted, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, yet his Dou Qi remained steady, slightly easing The Serpent Venerable's anxiety. "Good, he didn't explode immediately; there's still hope..."

Inside Li Yi, as the Dou Qi seed entered his Dantian, an immense surge of Dou Qi instantly filled it. Then, the overflowing lightning attribute Dou Qi chaotically raced through all his meridians. His once robust and resilient meridians twisted bizarrely under the pressure of the lightning, with some smaller ones forcibly expanding. Fortunately, Li Yi had previously wrapped his meridians in Dou Qi, so while there was damage, it was still bearable.

However, the abundant Dou Qi now pervaded his entire body, making him akin to a glass filled to the brim, ready to shatter at any moment. "Focus! Hold your breath! Circulate the Dou Qi through your meridians and channel it all into your Dou Qi vortex. Be quick!" The Serpent Venerable instructed timely.

Li Yi's previously chaotic mind cleared, and he exhaled softly, directing the wildly surging lightning Dou Qi into his Dou Qi vortex. This eased the discomfort somewhat, as the lightning Dou Qi seemed to merge naturally with his own, the Dou Qi vortex accepting it without resistance.

With his mind steadied, Li Yi pushed the lightning Dou Qi into his vortex even more fiercely. His originally tiny Dou Qi vortex swelled as more Dou Qi poured in, looking like it could burst at any moment.

"Stupid kid, merely channeling Dou Qi without refining it is useless. Even if your Dou Qi vortex grows, how much Dou Qi can you absorb? Quick! Use the Tianmo Jiubian's technique to refine the Dou Qi! Only then refine the Dou Qi seed! If the Dou Qi bursts your vortex, you're finished!" The Serpent Venerable admonished.

Li Yi shivered, breaking into a cold sweat. If not for The Serpent Venerable's guidance, he might have mistakenly believed that channeling the Dou Qi into the vortex was enough, potentially leading to a tragic outcome...