Cultivating Fighting Skills (Seeking Recommendations, Seeking Follow-ups)

Within Xu Haoyu's dantian, the Dou Crystal formed from the condensation of all his Dou Qi shone with dazzling seven-colored light, preparing to display its power and completely expel the white flame.

At that moment, Xu Haoyu's thoughts shifted. He voluntarily extinguished the flame, turning it back into a mass of white energy, then wrapped it in his soul perception to prevent his own Dou Qi from truly treating it as foreign energy and driving it out.

Once it was enveloped by Xu Haoyu's soul perception and its aura completely isolated, the diamond-shaped Dou Crystal indeed calmed down.

Xu Haoyu breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he had succeeded. Otherwise, whether his Dou Crystal expelled the Beast Flame or the Beast Flame burned away the Dou Crystal he had just condensed, he would be the one suffering the loss in the end.

But now, it was truly a double blessing: first, he had refined the Beast Flame; second, he had advanced to the Da Dou Shi realm.

Xu Haoyu opened his eyes. Seven-colored light flashed through them before they quickly returned to their usual clear black-and-white appearance.

He got to his feet and eagerly began studying his new abilities, starting with Dou Qi Emission.

Xu Haoyu raised a hand and flicked a finger, firing a pure stream of Dou Qi that struck the ground with a bang and blasted out a small crater the size of a washbasin.

After advancing to Da Dou Shi, even without using any Dou Techniques, Dou Qi Emission alone possessed remarkably formidable offensive power.

Next came the Dou Qi Armor. Dou Qi flowed from every pore across his body before solidifying over his surface, instantly forming a seven-colored breastplate that protected his chest and abdomen. As for his head, hands, and legs, he would have to further improve his Dou Qi before he could condense armor capable of protecting his entire body.

Just as Xu Haoyu was having the time of his life playing around with it, Xu Tianlong, who had been standing guard for him all along, laughed and scolded him.

"Enough playing. It's getting late. Let's find somewhere to settle down. You've refined a Beast Flame and risen to the Da Dou Shi level, so this trip has brought you considerable gains. We can head back tomorrow."

Hearing this, Xu Haoyu withdrew the Dou Qi Armor from his body and said with a grin, "Don't, Grandpa. It wasn't easy for me to get out here. Since the important business is already done, let me move around freely for a while. The Ten Thousand Mountains are so vast, and the Heaven and Earth Energy of every attribute is abundant here."

"Not only is this place suitable for me to cultivate for a while, but I can also practice the Mystic High-Rank Dou Techniques I learned before in this uninhabited wilderness."

Seeing that Xu Haoyu still did not want to return, Xu Tianlong's heart softened, and he agreed.

"That works too. There are plenty of magical beasts in these mountains and forests. You can use them to temper your Dou Techniques."

Xu Haoyu said happily, "Alright, Grandpa."

After making their decision, the two went looking for a place to stay, while Xu Tianlong also brought along the Blazing Heavenly Flame Tiger's corpse.

Before long, they found a cave. Then, near its entrance, Xu Tianlong dismembered the entire Blazing Heavenly Flame Tiger.

As a sixth-tier magical beast, it could be said to be valuable from head to toe. Its hide could be made into robes, its fangs, claws, and bones could be forged into weapons, and all of its meat was highly nourishing.

Even if Xu Tianlong did not care for culinary pleasures, Xu Haoyu was still growing and needed to eat his fill and eat well at every meal.

In the end, Xu Haoyu used his newly acquired Beast Flame to grill some tiger meat and stewed another pot of tiger meat soup in a medicinal cauldron.

No matter what, the Blazing Heavenly Flame Tiger would never have imagined that its own flames would ultimately be used to roast its own flesh.

As an alchemist, Xu Haoyu's precise control over heat was an important factor in successfully refining pills.

Therefore, the meat he grilled and the soup he stewed were equally perfect. With a sprinkle of refined salt and some medicinal powder and liquid extracted from herbs, the flavor was exceptionally good.

After eating and drinking his fill and resting briefly, Xu Haoyu found a large boulder, sat cross-legged atop it, and began cultivating. He circulated his cultivation method, absorbed energy, and refined Dou Qi.

The natural energy within these mountains and forests was abundant, flowing continuously into his body. Other people would need to filter out all other forms of energy and absorb only one type.

But Xu Haoyu accepted everything indiscriminately. Moreover, having just advanced to the Da Dou Shi realm, all his apertures were open and his pores widened, bringing his absorption of Heaven and Earth Energy to an entirely new level.

The feeling of being able to sense himself growing stronger at every moment was so wonderful that it was intoxicating.

Not far away, Xu Tianlong watched Xu Haoyu cultivate. His gaze suddenly turned sharp as he said, "Once my good grandson grows up, he will surely become a powerhouse surpassing me. When that time comes, some old grudges can be settled once and for all. The Tianxin Empire should also have a new master from then on."

The next day!

Within the mountain forest, Xu Haoyu raised his right hand high above his head. A stream of white Dou Qi, filled with the solemn killing intent of clashing weapons, surged from his Dou Crystal, flowed through his Meridians to his palm, and then burst out of his body.

Under Xu Haoyu's control, it condensed into a white wheel of light. The wheel slowly rotated, and its edge was far from smooth, instead resembling rows of jagged saw teeth.

At first, the wheel of light was extremely unstable, seemingly on the verge of collapse. But as its rotation accelerated, the signs of collapse vanished. Relying on the inertia generated by its high-speed rotation, the wheel's condensed form became completely solid.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The light wheel spun faster and faster, slicing through the air with whistling gusts. Its flashing cold gleam carried such sharpness and edge that no one dared look directly at it.

Xu Haoyu furrowed his brows and shouted in a deep voice, "Golden Wheel Slash!"

The instant the words left his mouth, he hurled the white wheel of light from his hand. It tore through the air, shooting forward in a near flash.

Nothing in its path could stop it. Ancient trees and boulders... it passed through them without the slightest resistance.

At first glance, the ancient trees and boulders looked no different from before. But when a faint breeze swept past, they split apart. The cuts were incredibly smooth, without the slightest burr. This showed just how sharp the white wheel was—capable of cutting gold and severing jade, it was no exaggeration to call it a divine weapon.

Xu Haoyu laughed heartily.

"Not bad. Among the many Dou Techniques I've learned, the Golden Wheel Slash has one of the best offensive powers."

"Throwing it out makes it useful for long-range attacks. Once I become truly skilled with it, I can completely wield a Golden Wheel in close combat. Just thinking about that scene is exciting."

Xu Haoyu then drew himself up and stood straight.

"Besides Golden Wheel Slash, there are also Thorn Killing Array, Water Dragon Bite, Earth Crack Lava Surge, Earth Separation and Union Art, Wind Blade, and Thunderfall Stream. I'll have plenty to keep me busy next. But these mountains are vast enough for me to wreak havoc as I please until I master these Dou Techniques."

Of course, while practicing his Dou Techniques, he did not forget to nurture his newly acquired Beast Flame. Around noon, beneath the blazing sun, he drank half a bowl of the Blazing Heavenly Flame Tiger's Heart Blood Essence. After refining it, he poured all the resulting energy into the flame.

The flame's power naturally grew stronger by the day. Had Xu Haoyu not already refined it, it might have burned him instead.