Departure

"Father, Yao and I plan to set out today." Xiao Yan bade Xiao Zhan farewell.

"Leaving today... Fine. Since you've made up your mind, go out and make your way in the world. Remember to say goodbye to Xun'er and the others." Xiao Zhan looked worried, but he still encouraged him.

"And remember to come back by the end of the year. Jia Nan Academy will be recruiting next year."

"Got it." Xiao Yan waved and left.

Xiao Xun'er was studying the longsword Huo Yuhao had sent her. Hearing a knock at the door, she set down the sword and went to open it.

"Brother Xiao Yan, you came at the perfect time. Where did this Spirit Artifact Brother Yao gave me come from?"

"Xun'er, I came to say goodbye. I'm getting ready to..."

Bang! Xiao Yan crouched down and rubbed his aching nose, his voice trembling slightly. "Xun'er, I'll be back soon."

No one answered. Xiao Yan sighed, slipped a letter through the crack in the door, and left.

"Finished saying your goodbyes? Got everything packed? You didn't forget anything, did you?" Seeing Xiao Yan return, Huo Yuhao reminded him, "You brought your Storage Ring, right?"

"Stop fussing. I'm all ready." It was Xiao Yan's first long journey since coming to the Battle Qi Continent, and he was extremely excited.

Yao Chen suddenly emerged. "That little girl of yours isn't coming with you?"

Xiao Yan touched his nose again, as though it still hurt. "That girl Xun'er wouldn't see me, so I left a letter at the door."

Huo Yuhao remarked, "Why leave a letter? Couldn't you just say what you wanted to say through the door before leaving?"

"Because I still have to say goodbye to Sister Ya Fei." Xiao Yan smiled awkwardly.

"That auctioneer from the Mittel Auction House?"

Yao Chen and Huo Yuhao both looked at him as if he were some kind of beast.

"I met her when I went to buy rare metals for Yao before."

Seeing the teasing looks on their faces, Xiao Yan choked up, then flew into embarrassed anger.

"We're just ordinary friends!"

The two left under cover of night without alerting anyone.

It was already late. After traveling for several hours straight, Xiao Yan felt somewhat exhausted, so the two stopped in a forest and lit a campfire.

After a simple late-night meal, Yao Chen said, "Remember to hide your storage ring and Storage Ring while traveling tomorrow. Don't wear them out in the open like that. It'll save you a lot of trouble."

"Don't show off your wealth. I get it."

Huo Yuhao took out a map. "At our speed, it'll take about five more days to reach Green Mountain Town and enter the Magic Beast Mountain Range."

Xiao Yan asked in confusion, "Can't we enter the Magic Beast Mountain Range near Wutan City? Why do we have to go so far?"

"This is the eastern part of the Magic Beast Mountain Range. If we cross through it from here, we'll reach the Tagore Great Desert. While we're training, I plan to visit my eldest and second brothers as well," Huo Yuhao explained.

"Cross the Magic Beast Mountain Range?" The corner of Xiao Yan's mouth twitched as he gave a dry laugh. "At our current level, we can at most wander around the outskirts. Crossing it is probably impossible, isn't it?"

"Quite a few medicinal ingredients Yao needs can only be found by trying our luck in the depths of the Magic Beast Mountain Range." Yao Chen explained, "Besides, with me here, what are you afraid of? Only in dangerous places can you improve."

"What medicinal ingredients do we need? Are they that hard to find?" Xiao Yan asked worriedly.

"Yao's original Spirit-Restoring Pill can't fully repair his Spiritual Sea. I've combined its formula with those of the Soul-Fusing Pill and other pills to create a new formula for a sixth-grade pill."

"A sixth-grade pill!" Xiao Yan exclaimed.

Yao Chen continued, "After studying the pill formulas Yao brought, those rare medicinal ingredients aren't truly necessary. There are other options, but a sixth-tier Magic Core is indispensable."

"So, Teacher, we're going to hunt a sixth-tier Magic Beast?" Huo Yuhao frowned. "There's no rush for mine. We can go later."

"Don't worry." Yao Chen laughed loudly. "A mere sixth-tier Magic Beast can be destroyed with a wave of my hand! Cough, cough, cough!" He suddenly seemed to choke on his saliva and thumped his chest.

"Rested enough?" After catching his breath, Yao Chen said, "It's time to continue on our way. Oh, and so these next few days won't go to waste, Xiao Yan, I've prepared something good for you."

With that, Yao Chen rummaged around in the Ancient Flame Ring for a while before tossing out a huge black object. It crashed heavily onto the ground, kicking up dust everywhere.

"Uh..." Xiao Yan stared blankly at the pitch-black object before him, which was taller than he was. Cold sweat immediately appeared on his forehead. "What... is this for?"

"Carry it on your back every day. You aren't allowed to take it off, even when sleeping."

Five days later, at dusk. Along a quiet forest path, Xiao Yan was drenched in sweat as he trudged forward with difficulty. Every step landed like a heavy object striking the ground, scattering leaves and grass.

Not far away, a white-haired young man wearing sunglasses and a blue-haired youth each had an ice pop in their mouths.

"This little gadget Yao made is pretty interesting. Even staring directly at the sun doesn't hurt my eyes." After speaking, Yao Chen looked back at Xiao Yan. "Too brutal."

"Xiao Yan invented it." Huo Yuhao glanced back as well and shook his head. "It really is!"

"Who came up with this training method, you two bastards?!"

Yao Chen took off his sunglasses, looked at Xiao Yan, and said, "We're talking about how brutal you are to the flowers and grass. You really don't care about the environment."

"Ahhh! I'm not walking anymore!" Xiao Yan fell straight backward and lay on the ground, letting the sweat on his forehead flow freely.

"Did you think I brought you out here just for sightseeing? Hehe, that comfortable life in Wutan City is far behind you now." Yao Chen's gleeful laughter rang out.

"How about this?" Huo Yuhao walked over and took out a bottle of Qi-Reversal Pills, handing it to Xiao Yan. "I'll suppress my Dou Qi to a one-star Dou Zhe. If you can beat me, you won't have to carry that Profound Heavy Ruler anymore. How about it?"

"Fine, you said it!" Xiao Yan swallowed the pill and leaped to his feet. His enlivened Dou Qi circulated through him, while his sore, numb muscles greedily absorbed the gradually dispersing medicinal power.

When the last trace of medicinal power had been completely absorbed, Xiao Yan seemed to sense that the explosive force contained in his muscles had strengthened somewhat compared to a few days ago.

Once Xiao Yan had recovered, the two separated by twenty paces. Yao Chen took out a slice of watermelon, sat on a large rock, and said, "Ready—begin."

As his words fell, Xiao Yan kicked off the ground and shot forward. His right fist flew straight toward Huo Yuhao's face.

Eight Extremes Collapse!

Huo Yuhao remained where he was, making no move. He did not even use Spirit Probe, merely watching the charging figure calmly. When Xiao Yan drew close, Huo Yuhao shifted slightly aside, dodged his punch, filled his left hand with Dou Qi, and struck Xiao Yan's elbow.

Smack! Xiao Yan crashed to the ground, his face stopping just half a meter short of it.

"Haha!" Yao Chen laughed. "Well? Still want to compete?"

Xiao Yan got to his feet and wiped his face. If he had not protected it with Dou Qi in time, he would probably have been disfigured by now.

"Again! I was careless just now. I didn't dodge!"

With that, Xiao Yan charged at Huo Yuhao again. This time, he did not use his full strength, leaving himself some room while activating the Qi Control Art, ready to borrow force and change direction at any moment.

Eight Extremes Collapse! This time, what came at him was not a fist, but an elbow strike.

Rather than wait for Xiao Yan to rush over again, Huo Yuhao raised his right hand. A faint force emerged from his palm as he activated the Qi Control Art as well. At the same time, his spiritual power worked with his Dou Qi to gather the surrounding air and natural energy into an invisible palm, which smacked Xiao Yan across the face.

Smack! The sound was crisp. This time, Xiao Yan fell backward onto his back and lay on the ground, questioning his life. Since Huo Yuhao had not used much force, Xiao Yan was not injured, merely in a little pain. His face hurt, his head hurt, and his heart hurt even more.

"Get up!" Huo Yuhao and Yao Chen walked over together and pulled Xiao Yan to his feet. Yao Chen smiled. "Understand now? You're still far from good enough."

Huo Yuhao comforted him, "Eight Extremes Collapse is indeed very powerful, and Xiao Yan, you've put a lot of thought into this Dou Technique. Most opponents at your level won't be able to withstand it, but they don't need to meet you head-on."

After thinking for a moment, Huo Yuhao added, "Xiao Yan, you should practice a movement technique. Using the Qi Control Art to adjust your combat posture is a good idea, but your spiritual power isn't strong enough yet."

"Master—" Xiao Yan looked at Yao Chen with starry eyes.

"Hmm, let me think—" Yao Chen reached out, turned Xiao Yan's head away, thought for a moment, and took out a scroll. "I don't have any particularly good movement techniques here either, but I think this copy of Explosive Step suits you right now."

"What grade is it?"

"A mid-level Black Grade movement technique. It uses explosions of Dou Qi beneath the feet for propulsion, giving it extreme speed. The reason you failed to hit Yao both times just now wasn't only because of his skill, but also because you're too slow." Yao Chen explained why he had chosen this technique for Xiao Yan.

"If you're fast enough, then no matter how skilled your opponent is, they won't be able to dodge."

Afterward, Yao Chen handed Huo Yuhao an identical scroll. "Yao, you can study this too. Explosive Step's weakness is its high consumption, but the Heavenley Cycle Art restores Dou Qi very quickly, which can make up for that flaw. Combined with the flexibility of the Qi Control Art, I believe it will greatly improve your combat strength."

"All right. Thank you, Teacher. Thank you, Master."