Sudden Enlightenment Upgrade, Eight Extremes Sky Cannon

Yao Lao added, "After entering the Magical Beast Mountains, aside from searching for medicinal herbs, I'll remind you to obtain magic cores."

"Everything else will have to rely on yourself. Unless you face a life-or-death crisis, I will not step in to help you."

Rolling his wrist, Xiao Yan was not surprised in the slightest. He had known it would be like this and could only helplessly walk toward the forest ahead.

Within the forest lay a large clearing, where a huge leopard covered in blazing fire-colored fur was sprawled out.

The leopard was powerfully built. Its fiery-red fur looked like a burning blaze beneath the sunlight, while its bulging muscles displayed the formidable strength of this magical beast's body.

"You just came over like that?" Yao Lao asked in surprise after returning to the Bone Flame Ring.

"It's just a little leopard. I like getting straight to the point!" Xiao Yan swept his gaze around and quickly found the two medicinal herbs Yao Lao had mentioned.

"Blazing Fire Grass and Blazing Sun Flower. They look to be thirty to fifty years old. If sold at the market, these two herbs alone would fetch at least one or two thousand gold coins. And these are only two kinds of medicinal herbs. If I had to spend money buying materials, I couldn't afford them."

Well versed in medicinal herb knowledge, Xiao Yan recognized the value of the two herbs at a glance and shook his head with a bitter smile.

"Roar!" Sensing an unwelcome guest appraising its treasures, the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard angrily opened a pair of eyes that seemed to burn with fierce flames.

"You're on your own now. This Blazing Fire Mad Leopard is extremely fast, and a few of them even possess the ability of bloodline berserkification. Once it is activated, not only will their already tremendous speed increase further, but their strength will increase as well."

After Yao Lao gave a chuckle, the Bone Flame Ring he inhabited fell silent again.

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan stomped his foot fiercely against the ground. The tremendous force instantly sank the earth three inches, and cracks rapidly spread outward.

With a thunderous boom, Xiao Yan shot out like a cannonball, instantly turning into a black shadow as he charged at the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard, several times larger than himself. Dense yellow light gathered around his fist. "Eight Extremes Collapse!"

Yao Lao had not truly abandoned Xiao Yan. Although he was within the Bone Flame Ring, he had been observing Xiao Yan's situation outside all along.

What speed. If the Black Heavy Ruler hadn't suppressed his speed, this Blazing Fire Mad Leopard probably wouldn't even know how it died.

Having only just risen, the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard had never expected such a tiny human to unleash such speed.

However, it was no weak creature either. Flames surged over its entire body once more, and as crimson light flowed around it, its muscles swelled to an exaggerated degree.

Its huge body abruptly twisted ninety degrees. As the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard dodged Xiao Yan's charge, the thick tail behind it lashed out like a flaming whip, carrying sharp whistling sounds as it viciously struck toward Xiao Yan's cheek.

His keen soul perception had been spread throughout the surroundings all along. Nearly every movement of the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard was clearly visible to Xiao Yan.

Xiao Yan's soul power had far surpassed that of ordinary people since childhood. Coupled with cultivating a technique that strengthened soul power, it had nearly reached the low level of the Mortal Realm.

Though the low level of the Mortal Realm was merely the most basic soul realm, it had already surpassed over ninety percent of the alchemists on Dou Qi Continent.

Many alchemists went their entire lives without ever learning of the existence of soul realms.

Xiao Yan's body spun sharply in an uncanny turn. His right elbow shot out with a piercing howl through the air. "Hidden Force!"

It struck heavily against the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's fiery-red body. A sound like muffled thunder exploded through the forest.

A monstrous force, like mountains collapsing and seas overturning, burst forth. The Blazing Fire Mad Leopard was immediately sent flying, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Bang! Bang!

Two muffled explosions rang out in succession from within the dust cloud. They had clearly come from inside the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's body, before it slammed heavily into an ancient towering tree.

For a moment, the entire forest seemed to tremble, and the scent of blazing fire filled the air.

Bang!

Another muffled boom followed. Though far quieter than the previous two, it still shook the ancient tree until it swayed unsteadily.

Yao Lao was startled. His understanding of Eight Extremes Collapse has deepened again—three bursts of hidden force!

But it still falls short. The intervals were too long, giving the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard time to neutralize them. Yao Lao felt a little regretful, but Xiao Yan had only been learning Eight Extremes Collapse for a single day. He was already monstrously gifted.

Xiao Yan exhaled a breath of stale air. This low Yellow-class Flame Mantra truly did provide pitifully little Dou Qi.

He already had the beginnings of an idea for solving this flaw, but putting it into practice would require some time.

The air suddenly shuddered. Within the dust cloud, a dazzling blaze abruptly emerged, followed by a heat wave that swept outward and dispersed the dust.

"Be careful, it's gone berserk!" Yao Lao warned.

At this moment, the flames covering the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's body had grown even more intense, as if it had set itself ablaze. Its eyes were like two crimson lanterns, and even its breath spewed firelight.

It was clear to see that the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's left hind leg was drenched in blood, exposing pale white bone. Cracks had already appeared across that bone, as if it might shatter at any moment. This was clearly the injury Xiao Yan had inflicted.

Xiao Yan nodded slightly. His previous strike had landed on the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's hind leg. Its power had indeed been extraordinary, but it was not lethal, especially against a magical beast with such terrifying physical strength.

[Drawing on your experience of using the hidden force of Eight Extremes Collapse, you attained sudden enlightenment and comprehended the Dou Technique Eight Extremes Sky Cannon.]

[Eight Extremes Sky Cannon unleashes all the hidden force of Eight Extremes Collapse at once, concentrating it into a single line. Eight bursts of hidden force merge into one, and its power is sufficient to rival an Earth-class Dou Technique.]

The corners of Xiao Yan's lips slowly curled upward. His heaven-defying comprehension was not limited to contemplation-based insights; practical combat experience could also bring it into play.

He had already used Eight Extremes Collapse several times. With the strength of his comprehension, it was enough for him to achieve this minor breakthrough and solve the issue of intervals between the hidden forces.

Having suffered such severe injuries for the first time, the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard was not only physically berserk—it had gone berserk mentally as well.

Fury concealed the intense pain in the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's body, and it immediately launched a fierce attack.

Though its hind leg was severely injured, the berserk enhancement still made it several degrees faster than before.

With a boom, it became a crimson bolt of lightning, leaving behind streaks of afterimages.

Xiao Yan only felt a heat wave rush toward him. His pitch-black eyes locked onto the Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's position as he abruptly threw a punch, smashing it fiercely into the leopard's downward-biting head. "Eight Extremes... Sky Cannon!"

Three bursts of hidden force condensed into a single line as all the Dou Qi within Xiao Yan's body poured out like a tide.

The Blazing Fire Mad Leopard's eyes widened in disbelief. It had already activated its berserk state, increasing its speed even further—so why was this human's attack still one step faster?