Time passed as Li Yun sat cross-legged on the ground in his courtyard, his body drenched in sweat as he practiced the Blazing Inferno Mantra diligently.
The sun, which had been high above his head, slowly began to descend, casting a reddish hue over the sky as it prepared to set.
At that moment, Li Yun finally opened his eyes. "I have completely mastered this technique to the 6th layer of perfection." His eyes shone with excitement. He couldn't believe he had mastered a top-grade human-rank cultivation technique in just a few hours.
'Let's see.' Li Yun smiled and held out his right hand. A moment later, orange flames began to flicker on his palm.
'So this is the first stage.' He thought curiously.
The first stage was called Ember Spark Breath. A practitioner could only achieve this stage after mastering the Blazing Inferno Mantra to the 2nd layer. In this stage, one could generate small bursts of fire energy to enhance basic attacks. The practitioner could also emit fiery bursts from their fists or feet, boosting their physical strikes with searing heat.
'Let's try the second stage.' Li Yun thought, spreading his palm. The flames on his hand disappeared, but the heat remained. A moment later, the skin of his right palm turned red, glowing like molten lava. It emitted intense heat, making even Li Yun sweat. However, not a single flame could be seen. Only his reddened palm radiated the fierce heat.
'This second stage is even more powerful!' Li Yun felt satisfied with the stage. It was more than he had hoped for.
The second stage was called Smoldering Palm, which could be achieved after cultivating the Blazing Inferno Mantra to the 4th layer.
'Let's try the final stage.' Li Yun thought, and a moment later, his entire body became engulfed in flames. Upon closer inspection, the flames seemed to form a protective barrier around the outline of his body.
'This is good.' He thought with a smile.
The final stage, Inferno Shield, could only be achieved after mastering the technique to the 6th layer of perfection.
'This Blazing Inferno Mantra is excellent.'
Li Yun was impressed by the three stages. Although the Blazing Inferno Mantra was primarily a cultivation technique meant to enhance one's cultivation, it did much more than that.
'Now, it's time to cultivate the Blazing Dragon Fist.'
Li Yun thought as he began reading the contents of the Blazing Dragon Fist. A few minutes later, he finished reading it completely.
Since the Blazing Dragon Fist was a martial technique primarily used for combat, it had three distinct forms that could be fully utilized once the technique was mastered to the 6th layer of perfection.
'Let's cultivate this Blazing Dragon Fist quickly. After that, I still need to master the Phantom Mirage Step.'
Li Yun thought as he stood up and began practicing the Blazing Dragon Fist.
Time passed slowly, and the sky grew dark. As Li Yun continued to practice, the moon began its journey across the sky. Gradually, the night receded, and the first rays of dawn appeared on the horizon.
At this moment, Li Yun was sitting cross-legged in his courtyard, calm and composed. As the sunlight bathed him, he opened his eyes.
'It's time to go to Seven Peak Forest.'
Li Yun smiled slightly as he stood up. Even though he hadn't slept all night, he felt refreshed.
'I've fully mastered the Blazing Dragon Fist and Phantom Mirage Step to the 6th layer of perfection, but they took longer than expected to cultivate.' He pondered.
He still remembered how he had mastered the low-grade human-rank Thunderclap Dragon Sword to the 6th layer of perfection in the time it took for a single incense stick to burn, yet each of the three techniques he had cultivated overnight had taken hours to master.
But then again, all three techniques were top-grade human-rank techniques, so the extended time made sense.
'It seems the difficulty of mastering techniques increases greatly as their grades rise, even within the same rank.' He thought as he headed for a bath.
"New outer sect disciples! Gather in front of the Combat Pagoda in three hours."
At that moment, a loud voice echoed throughout the entire outer sect.
"What is this? An announcement?" Li Yun muttered, surprised by the sudden call. "It seems I can only go to Seven Peak Forest after whatever this is about."
Li Yun contemplated for a moment before heading straight for the bath.
---
An hour later, Li Yun sat on his bed, skimming through the contents of the Titan's Cauldron Forging Technique. He wore a grey robe with red-colored markings on the sides.
"The first stage is called Cauldron of Bronze Bones. If one manages to practice this stage, their bones will become nearly indestructible, allowing them to withstand powerful impacts without breaking. Their physical strength will also see a significant increase, and their endurance will skyrocket." He muttered to himself as he read through the technique.
'Oh, there are certain ingredients needed to cultivate this technique.' Li Yun thought as he reviewed the required materials.
"A cauldron, bones of various beasts, and a natural treasure called Titanium Leaf."
Li Yun's expression grew serious when he saw the mention of the Titanium Leaf.
The Titanium Leaf was a rare treasure, found only near the graves of Titanium Leopards. The strength of these leopards made Li Yun frown.
They were one of the apex predators in the wild, and even though their strength was around the 5th level of Qi Training Realm, one would need to have a cultivation of the 7th or 8th level of Qi Training Realm to kill one.
This was due to their bones and skin, which were extremely tough and nearly impossible to break, pierce, or cut by someone of the same level. As a result, people often avoided these beasts and changed their paths to avoid offending them.
"All the more reason for me to venture into Seven Peak Forest." Li Yun muttered to himself, clenching his fists.
Previously, he had planned to go there to collect blood from beasts and absorb their essence using the Chaos Devourer Art to continue cultivating his Chaos Seed.
But now, there was another reason for him to venture into the Seven Peak Forest.