The Strange Flame Rekindles in Battle Through the Heavens

Chapter 32 Strengthening Combat Techniques

Xiao Yan moved his hands up and down in front of him, and the black and white flames gradually merged together. The yin-yang symbol in his hands kept changing, and finally, when he exhausted the last bit of fighting spirit in his body, it formed a huge, slowly rotating tai chi symbol. As the tai chi symbol continued to rotate, the energy of heaven and earth frantically converged towards it.

"This little guy actually managed to pull it off! Is there no justice? Is there no law? You're cheating! Elder Pig, stop this nonsense!" Yao Lao stared in shock at the ever-expanding, rotating pattern in front of Xiao Yan, for this fighting technique had reached the Earth-rank. The reason Earth-rank techniques are more powerful than Profound-rank techniques is because they draw upon the energy of heaven and earth, making their power incomparable.

"Teacher, hit me! I can't hold on much longer!" Seeing that Yao Lao was actually standing there in a daze, Xiao Yan couldn't help but remind him.

Hearing Xiao Yan's shout, Yao Lao finally came to his senses. Xiao Yan had only just entered the Dou Zhe realm, and forcibly using a Di-rank Dou Technique might cause a backlash. Although the backlash wouldn't be a big deal for Xiao Yan, at most it would just hurt him a little.

Yao Lao casually unleashed an attack, sending three sharp spikes wreathed in icy white flames hurtling towards Xiao Yan. Upon contact with the Tai Chi pattern, the spikes were instantly engulfed and vanished. The Tai Chi pattern subsided briefly, from which three black and white flaming spikes emerged, hurtling towards Yao Lao with even greater force.

Seeing that Yao Lao's attack had been deflected, Xiao Yan instantly withdrew his Dou Qi input, and the Tai Chi pattern in front of him disappeared. Having persisted for so long, Xiao Yan was exhausted and collapsed to the ground, his eyes still fixed on the three spikes that were shooting towards Yao Lao.

When the fiery spikes reached Yao Lao's face, they were blocked by an invisible membrane and could not advance any further. After a brief stalemate, a white flame appeared on the spikes, and the spikes vanished into nothingness.

"Not bad! You've reached the level of a Earth-Rank Dou Technique! The reflected attack is even stronger than the original. I didn't expect you, little guy, to actually pull this off. It truly surprises me!" Yao Lao didn't hold back his praise. Don't be fooled by Yao Lao's casual strike that dispersed Xiao Yan's reflected attack; that's because Yao Lao's strength is comparable to a Dou Huang!

"But this is too much of a drain!" Xiao Yan slowly stood up and said helplessly.

"Hehe, after all, it's a Di-rank fighting skill. The fact that you can use it with your current strength as a fighter is already something that makes everyone ashamed." Yao Lao looked at Xiao Yan, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes.

"Finally, I have my first signature move!" Xiao Yan said happily. Although the power of the Star Shift technique was also very strong before, it was much weaker as a trump card.

"Alright, your family tests should be almost over by now! Why don't you hurry down the mountain and show off a bit?" Elder Yao said with a smile.

"Whether I test her or not doesn't matter. The key is that I haven't seen that girl in a long time, and I really miss her." A smile appeared on Xiao Yan's lips, and he quickened his pace.

Before the black stone tablet in the family training ground, the examiner looked at the list in his hand, which bore Xiao Yan's name. He scanned the area but still couldn't find Xiao Yan. Shaking his head in frustration, he turned to Xiao Yan's page and continued the test.

Looking at the testers' actions below the stage, Xiao Zhan sighed helplessly, glancing out of the arena and muttering, "Is this brat really going to skip it?"

As the tests continued, the tester turned to the last page of the list. He glanced around the room again, shook his head helplessly, but still called out loudly, "Next, Xiao Yan!"

Upon hearing the examiner call out Xiao Yan's name, everyone began to look around, searching for the boy, but after searching for a while, they still couldn't find him.

The tester called Xiao Yan's name three times, and finally had no choice but to look helplessly at Xiao Zhan on the left side of the stage and ask if it was time to stop.

Xiao Zhan felt quite embarrassed when the examiner looked at him. If Xiao Yan weren't his son, he probably would have been ignored by the examiner long ago. Xiao Zhan slowly stood up from his chair, about to speak, when he noticed a figure rushing towards him. He smiled slightly and apologetically gestured to the examiner to continue the test.

The tester had no choice but to call out again in frustration, "Next, Xiao Yan!"

"Here!" Xiao Yan responded subconsciously, as if he had been called on in class.

All eyes in the bluestone square turned to the boy who was rushing over. He had a flawless face, a tall and straight posture, and his deep eyes revealed a hint of wisdom and decisiveness, as if he could see into people's hearts. However, his clothes were dirty and messy, full of holes, and covered in mud.

Xiao Yan did not immediately go up to take the test after entering the training ground. Instead, he scanned the crowd, trying to find the person he missed.

"Brother Xiao Yan!" Just then, a gentle voice rang in Xiao Yan's ear.

Xiao Yan looked in the direction of the voice and saw a beautiful woman. He frowned slightly; this woman gave him a feeling of familiarity mixed with strangeness. He then asked somewhat uncertainly, "Xun'er?"

"Hmph! Brother Xiao Yan doesn't even recognize Xun'er?" Xun'er pouted.

Looking at the increasingly beautiful woman before him, Xiao Yan's eyes widened. It had only been half a year; how could she have changed so much? At first glance, he almost didn't recognize her. One was a woman, the other a young girl—how could they be the same? Could a peach be the same as an orange? Could dressing up be the same as not dressing up?

"Xun'er, how come you've changed so much in the past six months?" Xiao Yan wanted to pat Xun'er's head, but he stopped as soon as he reached out. He scratched his head awkwardly.

"Brother Xiao Yan, do you like it?" Xun'er asked softly.

"Well, I'm going to take the test first." Xiao Yan felt a little embarrassed and hurriedly ran towards the black stone tablet for testing.

Watching Xiao Yan flee in disarray, Xun'er felt a pang of disappointment and sighed softly, "I shouldn't have avoided Brother Xiao Yan. I didn't expect that in just half a year, Brother Xiao Yan would be less affectionate towards me than before, and even seem somewhat distant."

Xun'er was starting to regret it! With Xiao Yan's talent, he would definitely encounter no shortage of women in the future.

Xun'er felt a strange sensation rising within her; she sensed that Xiao Yan would soon be leaving. If she missed this opportunity, she would truly lose him. This inexplicable feeling instilled a sense of crisis in Xun'er.

Xiao Yan walked to the black stone tablet and apologized to the middle-aged man beside him, feeling quite embarrassed about being so late. He then reached out and touched the black stone tablet. The moment Xiao Yan's palm touched the tablet, it shone brightly, the dazzling light blinding everyone present.

The entire place fell into a deathly silence; even breathing stopped, leaving only stillness as everyone's eyes were fixed on the black stone tablet.

"Fighter: One Star!"

"Xiao Yan, Dou Zhe: One Star!" Staring at the four gleaming characters on the black stone tablet, the middle-aged examiner was stunned for a long time before recovering. Although he had expected Xiao Yan's score to be good, this was still terrifying!

"Breaking through to the Fighter level in just one year!"

(End of this chapter)