Flexible Application of Earth Treading Steps and Sky Stepping Steps (Seeking Recommendations, Seeking Follow-ups)

Speaking of flames, a look of longing appeared on Li Fufeng's face as well. With a touch of emotion, he said:

"For us alchemists, having a good flame to assist us makes alchemy twice as effective with half the effort."

"And the finest flames are naturally the twenty-three Heavenly Flames on the Heavenly Flame Ranking. Nurtured by heaven and earth, every one of them possesses terrifying power. Obtaining even one would bring endless benefits for a lifetime."

At this point, Li Fufeng shook his head and laughed.

"I've gotten carried away. In your current situation, you should gather Beast Flame from a powerful fire-attributed magical beast. Given time and practice, it ought to help you break through your current bottleneck and become a true Fourth-Rank Alchemist."

Xu Haoyu listened intently. He was now an alchemist himself, and his inability to successfully refine Rank 4 Pills because of his flame had made him long for Heavenly Flames.

As far as he knew, there were four Heavenly Flames whose locations were known: Fallen Heart Flame in the Inner Academy of Jia Nan Academy; Sea Heart Flame, possessed by Han Feng in the Black-Corner Region; Bone Chilling Flame, possessed by Yao Chen, who had drifted to the Jia Ma Empire; and Green Lotus Core Flame in the Tagor Desert east of the Jia Ma Empire.

Every Heavenly Flame was uniquely favored by nature, and it was difficult for one person to absorb more than one at the same time. Without the Flame Mantra, a person could normally refine only a single Heavenly Flame.

Xu Haoyu had a special constitution, but under normal circumstances, he could likewise absorb only one Heavenly Flame. What he was considering now was how to obtain one.

However, absorbing a Heavenly Flame required preparing certain things...

Xu Haoyu thought from the bottom of his heart that even obtaining just one Heavenly Flame was not something that could be accomplished anytime soon.

For now, he should ask his grandfather to get him a powerful Beast Flame to use first.

Xu Haoyu then rose to his feet and cupped his hands to Li Fufeng in salute.

"Thank you for your guidance, Teacher. Once I return today, I'll discuss it with my grandfather. I may need to go out for a while, so I won't be able to come here for some time."

Li Fufeng stroked his beard and smiled. He had originally accepted this nominal disciple out of respect for the Grand Elder, but now, seeing Xu Haoyu's talent and diligence, he sincerely hoped that Xu Haoyu would achieve greater heights on the path of alchemy. He said gently:

"Go. With the Grand Elder's strength, he can take you deep into the Ten Thousand Mountains and extract the Origin Flame of a fifth-tier or even sixth-tier fire-attributed magical beast."

A flame seed that could be refined by an alchemist was absolutely not just some casual breath of fire spat out by a fire-attributed magical beast. It had to be its Origin Flame. Once extracted, it could leave the beast severely injured or even cause its strength to plummet.

Without sufficient strength to suppress it, a magical beast of that caliber would rather fight to the death—or even self-destruct—than let someone succeed so easily.

Xu Haoyu smiled and replied:

"That was what I was thinking too. Goodbye, Teacher."

With that, Xu Haoyu cupped his hands again, put away the cauldron and medicinal ingredients, and left the Alchemy Room.

Upon returning home, Xu Haoyu immediately explained his thoughts to Xu Tianlong. Finally, he smiled earnestly and said:

"Grandfather, Teacher said it too. It's because of my flame that I've been unable to become a Fourth-Rank Alchemist. If I obtain a powerful Beast Flame, I'll definitely be able to refine Rank 4 Pills."

"Good!"

Xu Tianlong slapped his thigh and agreed. The clan leader's branch dealt with external matters rather than internal ones, while the elder branch handled internal matters rather than external ones. Ordinarily, his most important duty was guarding the Xu Family.

Now that everything in the Xu Family was peaceful, it would not hurt for him to take a trip elsewhere. Besides, this concerned his beloved grandson becoming a Fourth-Rank Alchemist.

After only a year and a half of training, he had become a Third-Rank Alchemist and was about to challenge the fourth rank.

It was truly unimaginable what heights he would reach after two and a half years of training.

Xu Tianlong declared with absolute certainty:

"Good grandson, once I make a few arrangements today, we'll set out for the Ten Thousand Mountains early tomorrow morning. I will find you a powerful fire-attributed magical beast, take its Origin Flame, and let you refine it."

Xu Haoyu's face lit up with delight as he smiled.

"Thank you, Grandfather!"

There was not much else to arrange. Xu Tianlong simply sent someone to inform Xu Yaozu that he would be taking Xu Haoyu to the Ten Thousand Mountains to find a fire-attributed magical beast and collect Beast Flame. While he was away, all family affairs would continue as usual.

Naturally, Xu Yaozu had no reason to stop him. Xu Tianlong could go wherever he pleased. So long as he had not fallen, the Xu Family would remain as stable as Mount Tai.

The next day!

Xu Tianlong and Xu Haoyu left Tiannan City, where the Xu Family was located. They did not travel by carriage or any flying soul beast.

Xu Tianlong thought they were too slow and wanted to fly there with Xu Haoyu, but Xu Haoyu had ideas of his own.

Standing on the Official Road, Xu Haoyu gazed at the vast world before him. This was one of the rare occasions when he had left the family. The family was not only extremely safe, but also provided all the resources needed for cultivation, so he had never felt any motivation to go out before.

But now that he had come out and witnessed this vast world, a bold, sky-reaching spirit rose within Xu Haoyu. He smiled and said:

"Grandfather, I want to travel on my own!"

After saying that, Xu Haoyu drew streams of dou qi from his vortex, sending them through his Meridians and into his legs to activate his muscles and strengthen his Tendons and Bones.

Then he raised his right leg and stomped down fiercely. With a bang, he left a deep footprint in the earth. Xu Haoyu himself borrowed the rebounding force from that stomp and leaped into the air, rising seven or eight meters high.

A Profound Low-Rank movement dou technique—Earth Treading Steps!

The gale howled past his ears, and his clothes snapped in the wind. Xu Haoyu grinned, feeling utterly exhilarated.

He was only a Nine-Star Dou Shi and did not yet possess the ability to soar freely through the sky. Once the rebounding force dissipated, his body began falling back toward the ground.

But then Xu Haoyu stepped on empty air. With a thunderous boom, like lightning rumbling through a clear sky, dou qi erupted in a sudden burst like a rocket blast, allowing him to borrow force from the void and gain upward momentum once more.

A Profound High-Rank movement dou technique—Sky Stepping Steps!

Relying on that force, Xu Haoyu's figure flashed continuously forward as though he were flying through the sky. He shot more than ten meters ahead before that force finally dissipated completely.

But what did that matter? Xu Haoyu used the Sky Stepping Steps one after another, making it seem as if he were freely flying through the heavens with this movement dou technique.

Though it consumed an enormous amount of dou qi, his cultivation technique restored it quickly. Moreover, the liquid energy in his vortex seemed to boil, faintly showing signs of gathering together.

Xu Tianlong watched his beloved grandson skillfully employ the Earth Treading Steps and Sky Stepping Steps, and in the blink of an eye, Xu Haoyu had become nothing more than a black dot in the sky.

After smiling faintly, he stood with his hands behind his back and rose into the air. Using his rudimentary control over the power of space, he directly shrank the earth beneath his feet and rapidly pursued Xu Haoyu ahead.

"Not bad. You've mastered both the Earth Treading Steps and Sky Stepping Steps so skillfully already!"