Magical Beast Mountains

Not long after the first dull thud rang out, an even deeper muffled boom suddenly erupted from within the tree trunk.

"Crack..."

A moment later, terrifying force exploded from within. Ravaged by that hidden force, the massive trunk immediately began to sway precariously.

After holding on for several breaths, the battered tree came crashing down.

Only after the tree struck the ground did Yao Lao come back to his senses.

"Two layers of hidden force, and you've even brought Eight Extremes Collapse to the realm where hardness and softness complement each other. When the punch is thrown, it appears weak and powerless, but if anyone underestimates it..."

Yao Lao stared silently at the lone stump.

After praising him, Yao Lao said with a hint of regret, "Your use of hidden force is still too crude. It takes too long to erupt. If your opponent is perceptive enough during that time, they can disperse the hidden force before it explodes."

"Hehe, it's fine. This is only my first time. A few more rounds of practice, and these problems will be solved." Xiao Yan flexed his slightly numb fist and smiled.

Yao Lao nodded, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "The Dou Qi stored in the vortex within your body can support only a few uses of hidden force at most. Therefore, if you fight others in the future, you must aim to kill with a single strike. Eight Extremes Collapse was originally a killing Dou Technique as swift as thunder."

Xiao Yan nodded slightly and casually sat down on the grass.

In truth, the hidden-force effect of Eight Extremes Collapse was somewhat similar to the principles behind the Seven Injury Fist.

Once the Seven Injury Fist was mastered, a single punch contained seven different kinds of force—some fierce and hard, some dark and soft, some hard with softness, some soft with hardness, some sent straight forward, some drawn inward, and so on.

If an enemy blocked the first force but failed to block the second, they would be injured. Even if they blocked the second, dealing with the third would become even more troublesome.

However, the hidden force of Eight Extremes Collapse emphasized an overwhelming, landslide-like output that gave the enemy no time to react, so it lacked many of the Seven Injury Fist's variations in force.

Yao Lao narrowed his eyes, and a somewhat malicious glint appeared in them. "Eight Extremes Collapse places extremely high demands on the body. The following hidden-force training requires time for your body to recover, so progress won't be very fast. Do you want to cultivate this Dou Technique faster?"

"How do I speed up the training?" Looking at Yao Lao's broad smile, Xiao Yan suddenly felt a chill run through his body.

"Take a beating. The harder, the better." Yao Lao laughed sinisterly.

"Take a beating?" Xiao Yan shook his head with a bitter smile. "You're an alchemist who treats Dan King Gu He like dirt. Can't you refine some miraculous pills? I've become a Dou Practitioner now, so I can already take medicinal pills."

"Uh..." Yao Lao froze. It truly was difficult to make Xiao Yan, who had practically grown up in a greenhouse, understand the benefits of enduring hardship.

But since this sharp-tongued brat had said that—

If he did not show off a little skill, he would not be able to save face.

Yao Lao nodded. "It's not impossible for me to refine medicine, but even the cleverest housewife cannot cook without rice. No matter how capable I am, I can't refine pills out of thin air. You'll still need to provide the ingredients."

"I don't have money." Xiao Yan spread his hands, revealing the innocent smile of an eleven-year-old boy.

"Hehe, you don't need money." Yao Lao pointed toward the mountain range beyond the cliff. "The Magical Beast Mountains are full of materials. They won't cost you a single gold coin—it just depends on whether you have the strength to take them."

"The Magical Beast Mountains?" Xiao Yan sprang to his feet, unable to suppress the excitement in his eyes.

Xiao Yan appeared mild-mannered and indifferent, but his bones were filled with a thirst for adventure. He had long been looking forward to the Magical Beast Mountains.

Yao Lao slowly said, "Fighting magical beasts will give you more practical combat experience. Besides, what I need to refine requires a great deal of magical beast blood. It kills two birds with one stone."

The thing Yao Lao wanted to refine was called Blood Burning.

It was effective only for those who cultivated fire-attributed Dou Qi. For those who cultivated water-attributed Dou Qi, however, it was undoubtedly poison.

Applying it to the body accelerated the consumption of Dou Qi within the body, while also speeding up its regeneration. Amid the constant stalemate between consumption and regeneration, not only would one's Dou Qi cultivation gradually improve, but the strength of one's body would also increase.

Hearing that it required a large amount of magical beast blood, Xiao Yan was startled.

Holy shit, it's actually Blood Burning!

Using this thing would make one feel as though their body had been placed atop burning coals. The pain involved was far beyond what ordinary people could endure.

People from Yao Lao's era always believed that one had to endure hardship to become stronger.

But times had changed.

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan nodded. "It's only hunting some magical beasts. Fine."

Yao Lao chuckled. He could already foresee Xiao Yan's miserable screams after applying Blood Burning.

Without undergoing painful training, how could one possibly cultivate strength far beyond ordinary people?

Grabbing Xiao Yan by the sleeve, Yao Lao flicked his own sleeve. The space around them immediately trembled, and the two vanished from the back mountain of the Xiao Clan.

Nourished by an almost oceanic amount of Dou Qi, Yao Lao's soul power had already recovered to its peak state. Though it still fell somewhat short of the strength he possessed when he had a physical body, it was not something ordinary experts could compare to.

The Magical Beast Mountains were overrun with magical beasts. They were filled with danger, but also opportunities.

Magical beasts possessed a type of energy crystal core within their bodies. These cores were filled with extremely violent natural energy. Even a Dou King would not dare forcibly absorb such violent energy at the risk of their body exploding.

However, although magic cores could not be directly absorbed by humans, they were indispensable primary ingredients for alchemists refining medicine.

After being refined by alchemists through secret methods, the violent nature of magic cores could be neutralized by certain miraculous herbs, transforming them into all kinds of spiritual medicines that countless people coveted for increasing their strength. Their value would instantly soar!

Furthermore, magic cores could be embedded into weapons. Weapons enhanced with magic cores not only possessed even greater destructive power, but also had the alluring effect of amplifying Dou Qi. They were highly sought after by the Dou Practitioner class of the Dou Qi Continent.

Due to this demand, magic cores across the continent were almost always in short supply.

The high price of magic cores naturally gave rise to a large number of mercenary groups that made their living by hunting magical beasts.

However, obtaining magic cores was not an easy matter.

Not only were magical beasts powerful, they were also exceptionally cunning, often far more formidable than human experts of the same level.

Moreover, not every magical beast possessed a magic core. It seemed to be a matter of random chance, with no pattern to follow.

Yet it was precisely because of this that magic cores had always remained highly valuable and greatly sought after on the Dou Qi Continent.

Looking at the forest, far more robust than the one behind the Xiao Clan, Xiao Yan felt as though he were in a dream.

Just like that, he had gone from the back mountain of the Xiao Clan to the region of the Magical Beast Mountains.