The Birth of Burst Step, Arrival at Sunset Forest

Inside a room at Spirit Hall, Han Li woke up right on time as sunlight streamed in.

He had to admit, he had slept quite well last night.

After a quick wash, Han Li slowly performed a set of Phoenix Dances in the Nine Heavens, modified by Azure Luan. Feeling his body fully awaken again, he was in a very good mood.

Oh, right. He had retracted his senses last night, so he had no idea when his master had returned or whether he had delivered Han Li's remote flattery.

Just as the thought crossed his mind, someone knocked on his door. It was Broad Hill, carrying breakfast in his hand.

Han Li opened the door, greeted his equally cheerful master, and said, "Good morning, Master."

"Mm, good morning. How is it? Are you getting used to living here?" Broad Hill asked casually.

"Not bad."

Han Li took the breakfast from him and ushered him inside. As he placed the food box on the table and opened it, he said, "I tried it last night. Let's go check out that direction today."

As he spoke, he pointed toward Sunset Forest.

Broad Hill followed the direction of his finger and considered it briefly. "Sunset Forest?"

"Most likely. Only a place like a Soul Beast Forest could hide Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures."

Han Li stuffed a bun into his mouth and waited until he had swallowed before answering.

"Sunset Forest is only a little over a hundred li from Heaven Dou City, so it isn't far. We'll walk there directly and count it as today's training for you. By the way, do you have enough food in your Storage Wristband?" Broad Hill thought for a moment and looked at Han Li, who was eating.

Han Li glanced at his Storage Wristband and replied, "It's fine. Lasting a week won't be a problem. Besides, once we get there, food won't be scarce."

"Fine. We'll leave once you're done eating." Broad Hill made the decision readily.

"Mm."

Han Li began wolfing down his food faster.

After quickly finishing the meal, they went to inform Rosa Go and told him to remain on standby. The two then changed into clothes better suited for concealing their identities and headed out of the city.

After walking some distance beyond the city, Broad Hill slightly increased his speed. When he turned to look back, however, he saw that Han Li—who should have been struggling in his expectations—was following easily behind him. He looked utterly relaxed and even had time to admire the scenery along the way.

"Hm?"

Broad Hill watched carefully for a while before noticing that, unlike him, Han Li was not wrapping Soul Power around his legs. Instead, each time his feet touched the ground, a faint ripple of Soul Power appeared beneath them. At the same time, dim red and blue lights flickered.

Broad Hill could not help slowing down and walking beside Han Li. Pretending not to care, he pointed at Han Li's feet.

"What's going on under your feet? Did you come up with a new way to accelerate? The speed's not bad."

Han Li glanced at his master, who was sneaking looks, but did not mind him trying to learn it. With a chuckle, he said, "Yeah, it's an idea I've had for a long time. I named it Burst Step. Well, it could also be called Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada. The principle is actually simple. I control the fire element to create an explosion when my feet exert force. The energy rebounds off the ground, and I use that force to accelerate, propelling my body forward."

"As for the ice element, I use it to protect my lower body from injury. Unfortunately, the ground is uneven. It would be much better on a smooth arena or ice. As long as I covered the ground beneath me with a layer of ice, with my control over the ice element, I wouldn't even need to lift my feet."

"It was only after obtaining my Second Soul Ring and gaining the ability to control elements that I could try it. It's not that great, really. My lower body still can't withstand enough force, so I can only use it occasionally during long-distance travel to save a little effort. In actual combat, if I went all out, I estimate I could only use it two or three times before needing to recover for a while afterward."

"It's just a little trick, nothing worth mentioning." Han Li smugly waved a hand, as though it were all basic stuff.

Seeing his pleased expression, Broad Hill really wanted to smack him on the head. The key was that the brat even had his hands clasped behind his back, looking unbearably showy.

Forget it. He's my disciple. I chose him myself. Calm down, calm down. It took Broad Hill quite a while to soothe himself and settle his breathing.

Now that he understood the principle, Broad Hill naturally wanted to learn it himself. He moved a little farther away from Han Li and began trying it out.

After adjusting his stride, he gave it a try. The result was an unexpected sight.

With a loud boom, a crater appeared beneath Broad Hill's feet. Yet rather than propelling him forward, the force of the explosion all went into the ground, and his shoes were honorably scrapped.

For a moment, Broad Hill was enveloped by the dust kicked up around him. He was covered in grime and looked thoroughly miserable.

Seeing his master's practice produce such a delightful scene, Han Li decisively covered his mouth and suppressed his urge to burst out laughing. He stopped walking and silently turned around.

Only when Broad Hill began coughing did Han Li turn back. He walked over as though nothing had happened.

By then, Broad Hill had changed into a new pair of shoes, though his face was still dark. He glared at Han Li and threatened, "You didn't see anything just now."

Han Li nodded so quickly it was a blur. "Mm-hmm, I didn't see anything."

Then, pretending to mention it casually, he added, "Oh, right, Master. I forgot to say earlier—when trying Burst Step, to keep the ground from failing to withstand the force, you can first use Soul Power to form a mirror-like surface beneath you. That disperses the force across the surrounding ground, and it makes the recoil easier to control."

Seeing Han Li nodding so eagerly and even taking the initiative to blame himself for the incomplete explanation, Broad Hill finally nodded in satisfaction. He kindly patted Han Li on the shoulder. The boy was teachable.

The two set off again. Having learned from his previous failures and with Han Li's further explanation, Broad Hill finally mastered the right degree of output and rhythm after more than ten failures. He began running with some real form to it.

After experimenting for a while, Broad Hill also realized that Burst Step did indeed make travel faster than simply reinforcing the legs with Soul Power. However, this method placed greater strain on the lower body and demanded much finer control over Soul Power.

"When traveling in front of others in the future, use the conventional method. This footwork is easy for others to learn, and it's clearly better suited for sudden bursts and combat, catching enemies off guard. Once you obtain a Soul Bone, you can perhaps use Soul Skills to disguise it in battle as well, making it a supplementary method of attack. Using it purely for travel is too wasteful, and it could easily expose you."

After playing around with it for a while, Broad Hill slowed down again and fell into step beside Han Li, giving him a serious reminder.

"Mm, I know. But it's just me and Master here, isn't it? And it doesn't rely on a Martial Soul, so it's useful to you too." Han Li nodded with a smile.

He had indeed deliberately used it on this occasion. His head was filled with many ideas, and Burst Step was a relatively practical little technique. It was not restricted by one's Martial Soul either; anyone could use it through practice.

It was the perfect chance to use practicing elemental control as an excuse to gradually reveal some things to Broad Hill, allowing his master to increase his strength while slowly accepting Han Li's changes.

After all, as his elemental control improved, he expected to use a whole host of so-called little techniques and Self-Created Soul Skills in the future. This would save Broad Hill from finding them too difficult to accept later.

Hearing him say that, Broad Hill smiled and rubbed his head without speaking. Instead, he continued familiarizing himself with the little technique he had just learned. He tried extending it over his entire lower body and further increased the explosive power of compressed Soul Power in pursuit of greater burst strength.

Over the past year or so, he had gradually accepted how extraordinary Han Li was. Coupled with their constant time together, he had long since accepted this child—whom he had initially taken in under the Grand Elder's orders and later found rather entertaining.

Their relationship might not resemble that of most masters and disciples, but so what? Did Broad Hill need anyone else telling him how to raise his disciple? Besides, this brat never forgot to share any benefits with him. He was better than most sons, which was why Broad Hill was willing to accompany him running all over the place. He was currently at a crucial stage of accumulating Soul Power to break through to Rank Ninety-Eight, yet he truly raised his disciple as a son.

Thus, master and disciple traveled while testing and familiarizing themselves with the new skill. At one in the afternoon, they finally reached the edge of Sunset Forest.

"Master, take me up into the sky for a look. I can feel something calling to me."

Han Li put on a show of closing his eyes to sense for a while, then opened them and spoke to Broad Hill.

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