"There you go, young master! There is nothing to worry about now. Let loose and call the Thunder and claim you Lightning." Fang Qing cheered on as she herself was improving.
In the next breath… my strength surged. "ROAHHHH… ROAAAARRRR" I cried out a painful warcry. The giant image started condensing with consistency. And lightning filled the void, along with the resounding beat of the heavens drums, thunder! A sort of distortion in time and space occurred. Creating ripples in the very void it was traveling through.
"It's a good thing the team leader is protecting the others with the World Tree. I don't know how, but I get the feeling that 5th ranks would suffer severe injuries under these conditions." Ning Qi Zhi said, with a cold drop of sweat dripping down his face.
"Indeed, Leiji will be one of the future mightiest masters. With prowess to control his dao to this degree. It's already better than most 7th rank direct promotions I have seen in my lifetime." Qi Tai Chu noted, positively, stroking his beard.
"And then consider he has accomplishments in space, Time and Lightning & Thunder Daos. He is unmatched in his generation. There are undoubtedly going to be many women attached to his arms. Like father, like son, after all." Ren Zhi Bai added, as he watched the trembling void shake.
"Ahahaha, the team leader really has a talented son!" Shen Ao said, laughing loudly as if he was the one more proud of my advancement.
"Pay attention. I won't forgive anyone if he suffers from the Ink Clan." Feng Ying said, glaring at Shen Ao.
"Yes, senior sister… I'll keep watch." Shen Ao timidly said.
"It's almost done. This is either him achieving the 4th level or the 7th level. Either way he must be struggling." Yang Kai said, getting ready to act himself, just in case.
What was happening with me had changed. Right now the Lightning image of me has condensed significantly. Now only slightly larger than my body. And then… it was expanded to its original full size. Shocking everyone.
"Little Leiji, don't give up! You can pull through it. Break that wall!" Bai Yi called out.
"It's fine Bai Yi, Leiji knows what he is doing better than we can right now. But I do think he is about to have a Dao level equivalent to level 7. I don't see anything that says otherwise." Yang Kai said, placing a hand on Bai Yi's shoulder.
"But he said himself that he wasn't that far along the path of his Dao. What makes you say that?" Bai Yi asked, wanting confirmation.
"Simple. Look at the corpses he was able to grind apart. It's clear when we started this trip he was close to the end of the 5th level. He proved that with refining the 5th rank equivalents. And even slowly doing the same with the 6th ranks. And then do you remember what happened before?" Yang Kai explained, and then asked.
"You mean that big burst of energy before our first battle?" Bai Yi said.
"That's right. He advanced at that time. And hence he has been improving his dao the entire time. Sparring no thought for anything else. With his growth rate, and the abundance of resources. I wouldn't be surprised if he made it to the 7th level of his Dao." Yang Kai elaborated.
The image then condensed all the way down, and joined with my physical body. "This is… I wonder if this might actually be enough to work away at an ink nest. I'll have to give it a try." I said, opening and closing my hands. Clenching them occasionally.
"Young master… I think those Seniors from before were right. I think you have just stepped into the 7th level of your dao. We might want to try out the others and build them up soon as well." Fang Qing said.
"You're right there is no way this isn't a massive peak to climb. I even feel exhausted after having completed it. Let's make sure there isn't an enemy around…" I said, looking around expecting that something would try to sneak up on me. "Good, back to the ship then. I could use a nap." I said, Turning into a bolt of lightning and appearing on Daybreak's deck.
"So, how is it?" Yang Kai asked, looking me up and down.
"I was successful in my breakthrough, father! I believe this is indeed the 7th level. However, I am quite exhausted now. And could use some rest." I said, cupping my hands, and bowing slightly before falling over… asleep.
"Damn, if it made him pass out that must have been one hell of a pain in the ass. Let's get some more Ink Clan Corpses for him to refine." Ning Qi Zhi said, with an awkward chuckle.
"I bet I'll get more than you do! Martial nephew Leiji isn't going to need to worry about anything like that with me involved." Shen Ao declared.
"Oh yeah! I bet I'll get more than you! I'll even buy you five jars of wine if I lose." Ning Qi Zhi snickered.
"Oh yeah! I'll take that bet!" Shen Ao said.
"This is going to cause a problem if it goes on too long. So you should compare the gains after 3 battles. And then Leiji will decide who won. Understand?" Feng Ying said, being the voice of reason.
"Understood, Senior Sister." Ning Qi Zhi and Shen Ao said at the same time.
"Yang Kai, I'll take Leiji to his room." Bai Yi said, picking me up.
"Good, we will continue on with the mission." Yang Kai said, bringing out Mio Fei Ping and the others. "Everyone take your stations and activate the defensive arrays. The Ink Force will soon reach us, so we must defend against it. Let this be a test of your methods." The next few battles will not have Leiji participating in any regard. I will use my methods to purify the ink force if needed instead. But this means no 6th ranks outside the ship this time. Understand?" Yang Kai continued.
"Understood, team leader!" The 5th and 6th ranks said.
"Good, then battle stations. We're going to take the fight to those detestable Ink Clan." Yang Kai ordered.