The Strange Flame Rekindles in Battle Through the Heavens

Chapter 7 Cruel Training

"what……"

The mournful cries reached the heavens, startling the birds in the woods into scattering in all directions.

A boy's hands were tied to two different trees. He was wearing only a pair of shorts. His eyes were slightly closed, his head was drooping, and his whole body was beaten bloody and bloody, with blood slowly dripping down, as if he were being tortured.

Behind the boy, an old man sat cross-legged on a boulder, gazing at the boy's incessant groans, a slight pang of pity in his heart. He slowly asked, "Can you still hold on?"

The boy's slightly closed eyes snapped open, his fists clenched, and he shouted, "Again!"

Hearing the boy's response, the old man slowly exhaled, nodded slightly, and stretched out his palm. A pale red streak, still carrying wisps of white flame, suddenly shot out from the old man's palm, finally striking Xiao Yan's body heavily like a whip, leaving a long bloody gash on Xiao Yan's body.

"what……"

Xiao Yan screamed again as he was struck, his hands yanking the rope so hard that the tree, as thick as an adult, tilted slightly. The pain, so intense it pierced his very soul, was unbearable. Even the most resilient person couldn't stand still, so he had to rely on external force to hold it in place.

The intense pain made Xiao Yan's consciousness somewhat blurred, and he desperately wanted to give up this inhuman training. At that moment, the scene of Nalan Yanran's impending annulment of the engagement flashed through his mind, but it was as if someone in his consciousness was telling him that it was nothing, and that annulment was fine. Clearly, this reason had been used to death and was no longer effective.

As the image of that figure preparing breakfast for him before dawn every morning reappeared in his mind, Xiao Yan's consciousness gradually returned.

"Ha! Again!" Xiao Yan shouted, his body seemingly returning to full strength once more.

Hearing Xiao Yan's shout, Yao Lao sighed, "Has this little guy gone mad? He's even more insane than I was back then. What's keeping him going until now? Could it really be because of that girl Xun'er? I never expected this guy to be such a romantic."

Shaking his head helplessly, he stretched out his hand again, and a pale red streak suddenly shot out, with wisps of white flame attached to it. That was the strange fire he had subdued, the 'Bone Spirit Cold Fire', ranked eleventh on the Strange Fire Ranking. Tempering the body with strange fire—if he hadn't sensed the presence of that wondrous thing within Xiao Yan's body, Yao Lao truly wouldn't have dared to undertake this devilish training.

Taking a deep breath, Yao Lao manipulated the strange fire ribbon to lash Xiao Yan's body again.

"Bang……"

"what……"

The sounds continued to alternate, and when the last streak of lightning struck Xiao Yan hard, he finally fell into a coma.

Seeing Xiao Yan unconscious, Yao Lao slowly exhaled. A full hundred lashes—he truly wondered how this guy had endured it. After all, he felt sorry for Xiao Yan being whipped, and he wanted Xiao Yan to give up this grueling training, but Xiao Yan insisted on continuing. He murmured softly, "How can this kid endure so much hardship? Does he really have masochistic tendencies?"

Yao Lao stretched out his finger and gently drew two lines in the air, instantly breaking the ropes binding Xiao Yan. He then dragged Xiao Yan slowly towards the prepared wooden tub. The liquid in the tub was no longer blue, but red. He gently placed Xiao Yan into the tub.

"Ah..." The pig-like screams rang out again.

Xiao Yan seemed to have been thrown into a pot of boiling oil, splashing around incessantly.

"Quiet!" Yao Lao roared. Seeing Xiao Yan thrashing about in the wooden tub like a fish, he knew that if this continued, all the precious medicine he had prepared would spill out.

The thunderous voice of the old doctor resounded in Xiao Yan's heart. Xiao Yan gradually calmed down, gripping the tub tightly with both hands, trying his best to resist the corrosive effects of the medicine.

After a while, Xiao Yan gradually adapted. He sat cross-legged in the tub with difficulty, lowered his head slightly, and let the red liquid cover his entire body. The burning pain on his face made Xiao Yan's expression slightly ferocious.

After soaking for a while, Xiao Yan slowly raised his head, clasped his hands together, formed a strange hand seal in front of him, closed his eyes, and entered into cultivation.

As Xiao Yan cultivated, part of the red liquid flowed through his skin into his body, strengthening him. The other part transformed into wisps of pale red energy, entering his body through his mouth and nose, strengthening his bones and tendons.

This red liquid was extracted from dozens of precious medicinal herbs, costing Xiao Yan nearly 100,000 gold coins. If it weren't for Xun'er, Xiao Yan really wouldn't have been able to afford it except through auction of the Foundation Establishment Elixir.

This red liquid is much more potent than the Foundation Establishment Elixir, and its effects are equally significant. It not only increases cultivation speed but also expands meridians and strengthens the body.

As Xiao Yan cultivated, the red aura enveloped his entire body, continuously being absorbed and refined by him.

Suddenly, the red aura began to slowly rotate around Xiao Yan. At this moment, Xiao Yan seemed to have become a giant magnet. Not only was the Dou Qi in the surrounding space being rapidly attracted by it, but even the red liquid in the wooden barrel began to form tiny whirlpools.

"Hmm? Is he about to break through? It seems like it's only been ten days since he last broke through to the fourth level of Dou Qi!" Yao Lao looked at Xiao Yan cultivating in the wooden tub in surprise.

Under Xiao Yan's relentless demands, the red liquid in the bucket faded at a visible rate. With the influx of energy, Xiao Yan's face became slightly flushed, and a faint red glow emanated from it.

As the last wisp of pale red energy entered his body with his breath, Xiao Yan's body slumped slightly, then suddenly trembled violently. His lower abdomen contracted slightly, and Xiao Yan's eyes snapped open. Blue and white light flashed rapidly in his dark pupils. His mouth opened slightly, and he exhaled a breath of somewhat turbid air.

He leaped out of the wooden barrel and slammed his palm into the large tree in front of him.

"Fire-blowing Palm!"

A powerful wind suddenly surged forth from Xiao Yan's palm, blowing many leaves off the trees. It was many times more powerful than the first time he used it.

"Hahaha! Teacher, I've reached the fifth level of Dou Qi, and my physical strength has improved a lot too," Xiao Yan said happily.

"Not bad! Not bad! You've broken through twice in less than a month." The old apothecary stroked his beard with satisfaction.

"Is there any reward?" Xiao Yan asked expectantly.

"Hehe, I've already prepared it for you. Close your eyes and concentrate, I'll pass it on to you." With a casual instruction, Yao Lao pointed his finger and gently touched Xiao Yan's forehead.

A slight ache shot through his head, and Xiao Yan suddenly realized that a large amount of information was flooding into his mind. The sudden influx of information made his head throb.

"Eight Extremes Collapse: A high-level Xuan-rank combat skill, a close-combat combat skill renowned for its formidable attack power. When mastered, the attack contains eight layers of internal energy, which, when combined, create a power comparable to a low-level Di-rank combat skill!"

"I've got the Eight Extremes Collapse! With my current physical strength, I should be able to unleash some decent power!"

Under the guidance of Yao Lao, Xiao Yan gradually mastered the operating route and techniques of the Eight Extremes Collapse.

Standing in front of a large tree, I circulated the fighting energy within my body, running it along the meridians and acupoints of the Eight Extremes Collapse.

"Eight Extremes Collapse!"

The fist struck the tree trunk with fierce force.

With a muffled thud, wood chips flew everywhere, and spiderweb-like cracks spread along the spot where the blow had landed. The tree held on for a moment, but a gentle breeze blew by, and it collapsed helplessly to the ground.

Seeing the tree fall to the ground, Xiao Yan exclaimed, "This is the true power of a Xuan-rank fighting skill!" Thinking back to the Fire-Blowing Palm, which could only blow wind, he suddenly felt it was somewhat useless. Since he didn't yet have the Absorption Palm, they couldn't be combined to increase its power.

"Wait...that's right." A thought popped into Xiao Yan's mind: why can't fighting techniques be combined and used? He quickly asked, "Teacher, can fighting techniques be combined and used?"

"Hehe, combining and using them? It's not like no one has done this before, but most of them only dare to do it when they reach an extremely high level. Do you know why?" Yao Lao understood Xiao Yan's meaning and said jokingly.

"Why?" Xiao Yan asked.

"That's because fusing combat techniques is much more difficult and extremely dangerous than creating them. A slight mistake can damage your meridians and leave you crippled. Only those with high cultivation levels and broad knowledge dare to attempt to create combat techniques. Of course, some people do accidentally create combat techniques, such as the Fire-Blowing Palm," Yao Lao explained.

Upon hearing that fusing combat techniques was incredibly difficult and could even damage one's meridians, Xiao Yan felt somewhat discouraged. He had been hoping to incorporate some of the power of the Eight Extremes Collapse into the Fire-Blowing Palm, which would greatly increase its power.

Seeing Xiao Yan's discouragement, Yao Lao smiled and said, "You are different. Try it boldly! Even if your meridians are shattered, it will only take some time to heal."

(End of this chapter)