Eight Extremes Collapse

"So, when fighting others in the future, you must be decisive. If you do not move, then so be it—but once you do, give it everything you have and end the battle quickly!" Yao Lao warned.

Xiao Yan nodded, but he did not take the words too much to heart.

A Dou Qi Cyclone could not store much Dou Qi. Couldn't he think of another solution?

"Teacher, you know it well. All these years, I've devoted myself entirely to cultivating Dou Qi. As for Dou Techniques, I don't know a thing." Xiao Yan frowned, looking at Yao Lao with considerable frustration.

Seeing Xiao Yan like this, Yao Lao, who already understood his temperament quite well, shook his head helplessly. He would have to bleed himself dry again.

After pondering for a moment, Yao Lao laughed twice and shook his head before saying with a smile, "Fine. Who told me to end up with such a pitiful disciple? So you don't get beaten into a cripple, I'll teach you something."

"Your strength is still weak, so I'll first teach you a Xuan-class Dou Technique known for its offensive power. This Dou Technique does not have high requirements. Even someone at the fifth stage of Dou Qi can display some of its power. It is extremely suitable for your current lack of Dou Qi."

Yao Lao raised a hand to his brow and tried hard to recall it. "I remember that someone once begged me in tears to accept this high-level Xuan-class Dou Technique. But I wasn't interested in such things. If he hadn't pestered me until I was thoroughly annoyed, I wouldn't have helped him refine pills."

His casual, offhand manner made it sound as though he were talking about trash on the ground.

Leaning against the wall, Xiao Yan thought that the Xuan class was already not weak. With his heaven-defying comprehension, sooner or later, he would raise it to an unimaginable grade.

Yao Lao slowly opened his eyes. "If I hadn't encountered your situation today, I would have nearly forgotten about it."

"Close your eyes and calm your mind. I'll pass it on to you." After having Xiao Yan sit properly again, Yao Lao extended a finger and gently touched Xiao Yan's forehead.

A vast amount of information flooded into his mind. With soul power approaching the low level of the Mortal Realm, Xiao Yan felt no discomfort at all in the face of this sudden influx.

"Eight Extremes Collapse: high-level Xuan-class Dou Technique. A close-combat offensive Dou Technique renowned for its overwhelming attack power. When mastered to perfection, each strike contains eight layers of hidden force. With all eight layers superimposed, its might rivals a low-level Earth-class Dou Technique!"

This was indeed Xiao Yan's first contact with Dou Techniques. As the third young master of the Xiao Clan, he had had no chance to fight others to the death before the age of eleven.

Powerful Dou Techniques almost always required terrifying amounts of Dou Qi. Even if he comprehended them, he would not have the conditions needed to use them.

Thus, studying Dou Techniques would undoubtedly have been a waste of Xiao Yan's precious time.

Researching Dou Qi and soul power was far more important to him.

Savoring the information on Eight Extremes Collapse, Xiao Yan slowly walked out of the cave. After carefully reading through the entire Dou Technique once, he fixed his eyes on a tree as thick as a large bowl nearby, eager to give it a try.

Yao Lao poured cold water on him from the side. "Although Eight Extremes Collapse does not have particularly high requirements for Dou Qi, it places great demands on physical strength. It is a close-quarters combat Dou Technique."

Dou Qi cultivation could advance at a terrifying pace by relying on talent, but cultivating a Dou Technique required diligent practice again and again.

Thinking of the training arrangements to come, Yao Lao could not help but smile teasingly. With those skinny arms and legs of yours, even if you manage to use it, your muscles will probably burst before your opponent does. A high-level Xuan-class Dou Technique is not so easy to cultivate...

"Eight Extremes Collapse!"

A clear, cold shout suddenly rang through the forest atop the mountain.

Xiao Yan stomped fiercely on the ground, instantly transforming into an incredibly nimble shadow.

In the next instant, the shadow abruptly stopped before a tree as thick as a large bowl. His feet shifted, his body tilted slightly, and his elbow slammed backward into the tree.

Bang! A dull sound rang out as wood chips scattered everywhere. Spiderweb-like cracks spread outward from the point of impact.

"Creak..." The tree, with most of a hollow blasted through it by that elbow strike, swayed with a creaking sound. A moment later, it finally crashed weakly to the ground.

As the tree fell, the agile figure, nimble as a monkey, had already retreated first, then landed lightly behind it.

Looking at the result he had achieved, Xiao Yan smiled faintly. This Dou Technique was indeed extraordinary in close combat.

Having experienced it personally, Xiao Yan gained a deeper understanding of this Dou Technique, whose power could rival that of an Earth-class technique.

"Teacher, what did you say just now?" Xiao Yan turned his head toward Yao Lao, who floated beside him, and asked in confusion.

Looking at Xiao Yan's innocent face, Yao Lao cried out in his heart, A monster!

Eight Extremes Collapse was a high-level Xuan-class Dou Technique. Even a cultivation genius could not master it without diligently practicing for three months.

Xiao Yan had merely received the information on the Dou Technique, yet he had casually unleashed it. Judging by that speed and force just now, he was not inferior in the slightest to someone who had cultivated it for a year.

Such comprehension was truly terrifying!

"Ahem. Listen carefully next time." Yao Lao coughed lightly and continued, "Don't get smug just because you managed to use Eight Extremes Collapse once. That power was truly an insult to its status as a high-level Xuan-class Dou Technique. When you can..."

Yao Lao searched through the forest with his gaze before finally settling on a massive tree so thick that an adult would need both arms to encircle it. He raised a hand and pointed. "When you can break that tree, you can probably be said to have properly unleashed a high-level Xuan-class Dou Technique. If you can also master that hidden force, then Eight Extremes Collapse can display power comparable to an Earth-class Dou Technique."

"This tree..." Xiao Yan slowly walked forward and circled it once. After pondering for a moment, he nodded. "It's worth a try."

Kid, don't push yourself too hard! The words had just reached Yao Lao's lips when he suddenly stopped himself. In any case, the boy had excellent medicine for healing. Even if he suffered a setback, he could recover quickly.

Yao Lao also greatly admired Xiao Yan's talent in medicine and pharmacology.

Although Xiao Yan had not yet become an alchemist, he already understood all kinds of herbs thoroughly. The medicinal pills and powders he casually concocted using a physician's methods were hardly inferior to those of a first-tier alchemist.

A setback could be a blessing. It would do him good to suffer a little. Yao Lao nodded inwardly and quietly watched from the side.

Xiao Yan took a deep breath and clenched his fist. Pale yellow Dou Qi shimmered over it. After a brief stillness, he let out a fierce roar, like thunder exploding from nowhere, and drove his fist hard into the trunk.

"Eight Extremes Collapse!"

With Xiao Yan's current strength, he could not split this tree in two with one punch, but his fist should at least have sunk deeply into the trunk.

Yet when Xiao Yan pulled back his fist, the massive tree Yao Lao had pointed out, thick enough for an adult to encircle with both arms, was completely unharmed. Not even a bit of bark had been damaged.

"You little brat, are you playing with me?" Yao Lao frowned, but he quickly realized something was wrong.

Boom!

A dull sound suddenly came from within the tree Xiao Yan had struck.

"Hidden force!" Yao Lao stared at the tree in shock, his entire body frozen in midair as if struck by lightning.