Battle Through the Heavens: Heavenly comprehension

The Star Transformation technique gathers all the energy within the body, and after executing one move, the user will enter a brief period of weakness.

Facing Mu She's continuous blade shadows, Xiao Yan's soul perception could see through them, but his hands no longer had the strength to counter them effectively.

Thanks to his sharp perception, the immensely heavy Heavy Xuan Ruler in Xiao Yan's hands moved as if it were a light wooden branch.

With deft dodges and maneuvers, though his actions appeared comical, he was able to defend against Mu She's relentless blade web.

However, Xiao Yan was gradually pushed back several steps. Compared to his initial fierce momentum, he now seemed rather fatigued.

Suppressing a genius who had slain over ten mercenaries in an instant, Mu She's eyes gleamed ominously as he glanced at the mercenaries behind Xiao Yan.

"The Blood Battle Mercenary Group... possessing Earth-tier techniques, don't you desire them? Kill him, and you'll have the right to cultivate Earth-tier techniques!"

The consecutive fierce attacks gave Xiao Yan deep insight into the flaws of his fighting techniques. His extraordinary comprehension allowed him to constantly refine his techniques, and at this moment, he reached a conclusion.

[You have deeply understood the flaws of Star Transformation and Reincarnation Tribulation. You have gained enlightenment and comprehended Void Annihilation: Wolf King Seal.]

[Void Annihilation emphasizes defense, stability, and resilience. The spiral cyclone disperses energy as if it were void, accommodating everything. The legs adopt the Two-Character Stance, dismantling attacks and retaliating after defense. The power of the counterattack depends on the user's battle qi strength.]

[Technique: Wolf King Seal]

As Mu She's words fell, Ka Gang's face darkened, and he retorted, "The Blood Battle Mercenary Group does not betray friends!"

Most of the Blood Battle Mercenaries wore indignant expressions, but a single white-robed man silently circulated his battle qi.

Though Xiao Yan knew of the Blood Battle Mercenary Group, he remained vigilant, keeping his soul perception focused on their movements.

"I can't stay stuck with Yellow-tier techniques my entire life!" Mu Lan roared, his palm brimming with golden battle qi as he struck straight towards Xiao Yan's back.

A sinister smile curled at Mu She's lips. In the face of absolute benefits, no one could resist temptation.

With a sigh, Yao Lao lamented inwardly. Xiao Yan's comprehension was indeed extraordinary, but he was still too young.

Watching Mu Lan transform into a streak of golden light, Ka Gang's eyes widened in disbelief. "Mu Lan, you!"

This was the genius of the Blood Battle Mercenary Group, a young one-star Dou Fighter, and yet he turned out to be such a despicable person!

It was too late to intercept, and Ka Gang shouted, "Brother Xiao Yan, be careful! That's a high-level Yellow-tier technique, Diamond Palm, with immense destructive power capable of splitting mountains!"

Mu She watched Mu Lan's attack drawing close and quietly stepped back.

A dying lion's counterattack was not something to be underestimated.

Hearing Ka Gang's warning, Mu Lan sneered coldly.

"So what if you know my technique? Can you defend against it?"

With his battle qi pushed to the limit, Mu Lan's glowing golden palm slammed into Xiao Yan's back.

"Hahaha, die! Hand over the Earth-tier technique!"

Ka Gang lowered his head in despair. Mu Lan's palm strike had landed solidly; even a thick rock wouldn't withstand it, let alone Xiao Yan's path of genius.

However, Mu She sharply noticed something off—why didn't Xiao Yan spit blood?

"Void Annihilation!" Xiao Yan bellowed, standing in the Two-Character Stance, instantly dispersing the Diamond Palm's force into nothingness.

He stabbed the Heavy Xuan Ruler into the ground, spun his body around, grabbed Mu Lan's arm, and yanked him forward before delivering a powerful palm strike.

"Wolf King Seal!"

Xiao Yan's counterattack was executed perfectly. With his formidable six-star Dou Fighter foundation, a crisp sound of bone shattering echoed.

Mu Lan's limbs went limp, and he was tossed aside, bleeding from all seven orifices.

"H-How... is this possible?" Mu Lan muttered in a daze, staring at the sky.

Even at his death, he couldn't comprehend how his full-force palm strike, aimed at an unguarded target, had failed to cause any harm!

Not just Mu Lan, even Yao Lao, who was ready to intervene, was stunned.

"What kind of monstrous comprehension is this?"

Facing the mercenaries' continuous assaults, Xiao Yan repeatedly broke through his limits, gaining enlightenment after enlightenment in the midst of battle.

Ka Gang and his men felt no sympathy for Mu Lan.

Today, he betrayed Xiao Yan for profit; tomorrow, he could betray the mercenary group for the same reason.

Mercenaries despised such traitors the most!

Even Qing Ling, who had always admired Mu Lan, now realized how blind she had been.

Seeing the sudden turn of events, Mu She took three steps back, whispering to himself. The stronger Xiao Yan became, the greater the opportunity Mu She could obtain.

However, Mu She no longer had the desire for a direct confrontation with Xiao Yan; he quietly retreated behind his mercenaries.

"Stay!" Xiao Yan stomped the ground with full force, producing a sonic boom, and shot towards Mu She like a meteor.

"Stop him! Stop him!" Mu She panicked, shoving mercenaries in front of him like human shields.

Xiao Yan, unfazed, delivered a simple yet devastating punch.

"Eight Extremities: Sky Cannon!"

Battle qi burst out like a torrential flood, obliterating the human wall in an instant.

Mu She barely had time to react before Xiao Yan's fist struck his chest, sending him flying like a broken kite.

He crashed into a large tree, vomiting blood, his face ashen.

Compared to his injuries, the terror in his heart was overwhelming.

Would you like me to continue translating the rest?

Even if one had started cultivating from the womb, it would still be impossible to possess both Dou Qi cultivation and mastery over several exquisite Dou Techniques! 

As Mu She took his last breath, Xiao Yan exhaled heavily. 

The continuous use of high-intensity Dou Techniques had taken a toll on him as well. 

If his cultivation technique hadn't advanced to the Xuan level, today's battle would not have been as easy to handle. 

With Mu She's death, the mercenaries of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group fell into utter panic. 

The outer-circle mercenaries, who had barely held off the magical beasts with their lives, were now without their leader and lacked the strength to resist the beasts' assault. 

Swiftly dealing with the remaining mercenaries, more than a dozen magical beasts surrounded Xiao Yan, obedient as kittens. 

Ka Gang and the others could hardly believe their eyes—were these the same mighty magical beasts from earlier? 

Patting Xiao Hong's head, Xiao Yan turned to the Blood Battle Mercenary Group and smiled faintly. 

"The scent of blood here is too strong. Let's part ways for now." 

After collecting the Wolf Head Mercenary Group's small treasury, Xiao Yan mounted Xiao Hong and led the pack of magical beasts in a grand march toward the Magic Beast Mountain Range. 

Ka Gang had a strange feeling—if he were to encounter Xiao Yan again in the future, he believed the young man would have grown to a terrifying level that one could only look up to. 

After running through the night, Xiao Yan's vision suddenly widened. The roaring sound of a waterfall filled his ears, bringing a smile to his face. 

Emerging past the last giant tree blocking his way, Xiao Yan took a deep breath at the sight before him. 

In his view, a massive waterfall cascaded down from a towering mountain peak, resembling a silver curtain crashing against the boulders below, with water mist filling the air. 

On either side of the waterfall were steep cliffs, dotted with naturally-formed caves that made Xiao Yan ecstatic. 

If he piled some stones at the entrances of these caves, he could keep the magical beasts out and never again have to worry about waking up to find a venomous snake coiled beside him during his training. 

"I've finally found the perfect place to cultivate," Xiao Yan murmured with a smile, stretching out his arms and breathing in the misty air, urging Xiao Hong to move forward quickly. 

Upon entering the valley, Yao Lao's figure emerged, surveying the surroundings with a slight nod. "This is indeed an excellent place for cultivation." 

With that, Yao Lao's hands danced in a series of afterimages, and suddenly, the space above the valley began to ripple strangely. 

Moments later, the space twisted and distorted violently. 

"Spatial Lock!" 

As the spatial distortions intensified, Yao Lao's hand seals abruptly changed, and he shouted in a deep voice. 

At the sound of his command, the surrounding space instantly solidified, and a peculiar energy wave rapidly spread outward, covering the entire valley. 

Looking at the energy barrier now enveloping the sky, Xiao Yan raised his hand and touched his nose. 

He wondered—under the nourishment of his terrifying Dou Qi, just how much strength had Yao Lao recovered? 

Judging by his performance, he had at least reached the level of a Dou Ancestor. 

"Don't just stand there—watch closely. I'm about to teach you an Earth-class Dou Technique." 

Yao Lao reached out and effortlessly grabbed the heavy Xuan Heavy Ruler, which weighed thousands of pounds. 

With the ruler no longer in his hands, Xiao Yan felt noticeably lighter. He crossed his arms in front of him and rolled his shoulders, preparing himself for what was to come.

Yao Lao held the heavy ruler in his hand and slowly ascended into the air. Upon reaching the center of the lake, he lowered his head, his gaze sharp as he stared at the lake's surface.

With a single step into the void, his figure vanished instantly, reappearing beneath the massive waterfall.

The black ruler in his hand radiated a dazzling glow, seemingly gathering endless energy. He let out a low shout: "Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler!"

Like a bolt of lightning, Yao Lao's figure shot toward the waterfall with the momentum of a descending tiger, an earth-shattering force accompanying his charge.

Just as he was about to collide with the waterfall, an invisible force burst forth from the black ruler, instantly forming a massive crimson glow.

The crimson light slashed across the lake like a flash of lightning, stirring up towering waves of water ten meters high and crashing ferociously against the cascading waterfall.

Boom!

The deafening explosion echoed through the valley, making the entire world seem to tremble.

A towering column of water shot skyward, and the dispersing mist instantly veiled the entire lake.

With their vision completely obscured, only the roar of the waterfall and the reverberating thunderous echoes in the valley could be heard.

As the fierce wind howled, the water vapor rapidly dispersed, revealing the true form of the waterfall.

On the massive rock behind the waterfall, a deep and striking ravine stood out, its edges lined with countless fine cracks, spreading like creeping vines.

[You carefully observed the execution of Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler. You have achieved enlightenment and mastered the Earth-class low-tier Dou Technique, Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler.]

[Once mastered, the Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler can cleave mountains and part waves with ease.]

Yao Lao handed the Xuan Heavy Ruler back to Xiao Yan with a smile and said, "Earth-class Dou Techniques are fundamentally superior to Xuan-class techniques. From today onward, you must persist in slashing the water flow three hundred—no, one thousand times. By then, you'll have the basics of the 'Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler.'"

"However, given your current Dou Qi, even with the enhancement of the Flame Seal, you can only unleash its full power three times at most. So, don't use it carelessly unless absolutely necessary!"

Although Xiao Yan's cultivation technique had advanced, with his increasing Dou Qi, the power of each execution of the Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler would grow stronger, consuming more energy in the process.

"Training by slashing water flow?" Xiao Yan shook his head. "That's unnecessary!"

Gripping the hilt of the Xuan Heavy Ruler, he lifted it with a sudden pull, his hand gently caressing the ruler's surface. At that moment, his Dou Qi surged like boiling water, rippling fiercely within him.

Seeing Xiao Yan's movements, Yao Lao was taken aback: Could this kid have mastered an Earth-class Dou Technique just by watching it once? How is that possible?

As Xiao Yan's Dou Qi surged, the dark ruler suddenly turned fiery red, glowing like heated iron.

Executing an Earth-class Dou Technique for the first time, a reddish flush appeared on Xiao Yan's face. The Dou Qi cyclone within him continuously channeled energy through his meridians, fully infusing it into the Xuan Heavy Ruler.

With an influx of pure Dou Qi, the ruler radiated a profound yellow glow. The intense heat made the surrounding air appear somewhat distorted.

Due to the evolution of his cultivation technique, Xiao Yan's Dou Qi could now be classified as Heavenly Flame Dou Qi, or more precisely, Xuan Huang Flame Dou Qi.

As Xiao Yan attained further enlightenment regarding various Heavenly Flames, this Dou Qi would only grow stronger.

"Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler!" Xiao Yan grinned as he swung the heavy ruler down like a setting sun, slashing forcefully at the waterfall!

In an instant, the scorching heat caused the mist to rise and evaporate, and the colossal waterfall was once again cleaved in two.

However, Xiao Yan's current strength was far inferior to Yao Lao's. The water flow only halted for two seconds before resuming its downward cascade.

In comparison, Yao Lao had stopped the waterfall for over twenty seconds, a significant difference.

Even so, Yao Lao was left utterly speechless.

This exceptionally rare ruler-based Earth-class Dou Technique—Xiao Yan had truly mastered it just by watching once!

(End of Chapter)

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