6 Chapter 6: Nalan Yanran

"Fifth stage Dou Disciple? I underestimated you, you little brat!"

Mu Zhan squinted his eyes, quickly discerning Yun Tianming's Dou Qi level from their recent confrontation.

To be honest, achieving the fifth stage of Dou Disciple at such a young age was quite impressive. His talent wasn't much inferior to Mu Zhan's. This fact, however, irked Mu Zhan. After all, he was the young master of the prestigious Mu Family, one of the three major families in the Imperial Capital. Who was the other person? Just an outer disciple of the Misty Cloud Sect, essentially the lowest-ranking laborer. Why should he be compared to Mu Zhan? Moreover, daring to approach Ya Fei made Mu Zhan extremely displeased.

"Sixth stage of Dou Disciple, with overflowing Dou Qi. Within a month, you can advance to the seventh stage of Dou Disciple."

Yun Tianming shook his slightly numb hand. The power gap between someone at almost the second stage of Dou Disciple and the first stage was quite significant. Fortunately, due to the strengthening from the system, his physical strength could rival that of a sixth-stage Dou Disciple. This allowed him to hold his ground in the clash against Mu Zhan without conceding defeat.

"Oh, your perception is quite keen, kid."

Mu Zhan raised an eyebrow, his face filled with a triumphant expression.

Dou Disciple is the foundational stage for practitioners to temper their bodies. It requires gradual progress and cannot be rushed. Each advancement in Dou Disciple takes time, ranging from one to several years of cultivation. Especially when it comes to the transition from the sixth stage to the seventh stage, it is considered a small watershed. It's normal for most people to be stuck at this stage for several years.

The Dou Disciple stages are categorized as follows: the first to the third stage is Low Level, the fourth to the sixth stage is Mid Level, and the seventh to the ninth stage is High Level.

Currently, Mu Zhan is on the verge of reaching the seventh stage. Once he breaks through, his Dou Disciple level will transform into High Level, leading to a qualitative improvement in his body tempering effects!

"Huh?"

Ya Fei's beautiful eyes flashed with a hint of surprise. Mu Zhan, who was self-satisfied with his own strength, did not notice that Yun Tianming could see through his details at a glance. However, the perceptive Ya Fei, with her keen insight, sensed some clues. She thought to herself: Is Yun Tianming naturally gifted with powerful soul strength?

Although Ya Fei's strength was not formidable, being from the Miteer commercial family, she had encountered numerous alchemists and had some understanding of soul strength. The soul is innate, and in terms of rarity, it is even more precious than the talent for Dou Qi cultivation. Not to mention that Yun Tianming's talent for Dou Qi cultivation itself was quite good.

This is getting interesting.

As Mu Zhan, who had been ardently admiring Ya Fei, noticed her gaze consistently fixed on Yun Tianming, a mixture of urgency and anger welled up within him.

"You little brat, today I will definitely destroy you!"

Mu Zhan shouted loudly, leaping into the air. Dou Qi concentrated on his fist, violently smashing downward!

"Swoosh~"

Yun Tianming instinctively retreated to evade.

"Boom!"

Mu Zhan's fist heavily smashed into the ground, but his face displayed a triumphant smile.

"Thorny Entanglement!"

A Yellow Rank High-level Dou Technique!

"Hmm?!"

Yun Tianming felt a strange movement under his feet. Suddenly, a large number of thorny vines emerged from the soil, first binding his legs and then rapidly growing, entwining around his limbs!

"Mu Zhan! Stop this!"

Ya Fei exclaimed, attempting to dissuade him.

"I'll say it again, whoever dares to touch you, I will destroy them!"

Mu Zhan drew a pair of cross-shaped sticks from his waist. These were close-range combat weapons made of ironwood, balancing toughness and hardness. A strike with these sticks could shatter bones!

Swinging the cross-shaped sticks in the wind, Mu Zhan ruthlessly struck Yun Tianming

"Ah!"

As if unable to bear the tragic scene of Yun Tianming's arms being broken, Ya Fei subconsciously closed her eyes. At the same time, a sense of regret surged within her. She realized she was a source of trouble and shouldn't have approached him, potentially leading to his misery.

However, the anticipated horrifying sound of bones breaking did not occur. Instead, there was a strange "puchi" sound. Ya Fei cautiously opened one eye.

"Withering Grass Palm!"

Dou Qi with corrosive properties released from the palm.

Yun Tianming suddenly broke free from the entwining vines, effortlessly avoiding Mu Zhan's strike with the cross-shaped sticks.

"What?!"

Mu Zhan's confidently expected attack missed, catching him off guard and causing him to tumble forward, face planting on the ground.

"To think that he instantly dispelled Mu Zhan's Yellow Rank High-level Dou Technique. Does that mean Yun Tianming is also using a Yellow Rank High-level Dou Technique.

Ya Fei was astonished by this revelation.

A Yellow Rank High-level Dou Technique, for a major family, might not be considered rare. However, when did the Misty Cloud Sect become so generous, providing an outer disciple with a Yellow Rank High-level Dou Technique?

"Ptui, ptui, ptui!"

Mu Zhan, having taken a fall, spat out the dry grass from his mouth, causing little harm but delivering a strong insult.

"You infuriating brat!"

"I originally just wanted to destroy your limbs, but now you've provoked me!"

"Prepare to meet your end!"

Losing face in front of his crush, Mu Zhan, in a moment of impulsiveness, lost his composure. Intense green Dou Qi emanated from his body, and sharp wooden thorns grew from the tip of the cross-shaped sticks in his hands.

"Is this a Black Rank Dou Technique? Mu Zhan, are you trying to kill him?!"

Ya Fei, feeling anxious, looked on with concern. Unfortunately, being only a fourth-stage Dou Disciple, she could only stand on the sidelines, helpless.

"Heh! Indeed, a barbarian."

Yun Tianming snorted coldly, but his face showed little panic.

While the opponent was indeed using a Black Rank Dou Technique, Mu Zhan, with his sixth-stage Dou Disciple strength, was far from being able to unleash the true power of a Black Rank Dou Technique. Even if he managed to execute it now, it would be nothing more than a superficial display.

"Exhale~"

Yun Tianming took a deep breath, calmly releasing his soul power to lock Mu Zhan's movements!

Faced with Mu Zhan's Black Rank Dou Technique, he had no intention of directly confronting it. Instead, he used his soul power to sense the opponent's attack movements, allowing him to evade and dodge effectively.

"Go to hell!"

"Green Wood Thorn!"

A Black Rank Mid-Level Dou Technique!

If this strike landed, Yun Tianming would likely be severely injured or destroyd!

However, no matter how powerful an attack is, it's futile if it doesn't hit, isn't it?

However, just as Yun Tianming was about to step back, he suddenly halted, his expression unchanged as he stared at the sharp wooden thorns thrusting towards him.

At the critical moment, a sweet shout from a girl came from behind.

"Do not harm people in the Misty Cloud Sect!"

"Thousand Wind Power!"

A Black Rank Mid-Level Dou Technique!

A green whirlwind converged into sharp nails, directly striking towards Mu Zhan, who was forced to adjust the Green Wood Thorn in his hand to parry it.

"Bang!"

With a loud collision of Dou Qi, Mu Zhan's body shook, and he was forced to retreat.

"Damn it! Who dares to interfere in my affairs?"

Mu Zhan subconsciously cursed at the person who had suddenly intervened.

The newcomer was a girl dressed in a pink skirt, with twin ponytails and delicate facial features. She was as lovely as a porcelain doll, and her age was similar to Yun Tianming's.

Yun Tianming scanned with his soul power, and a slight movement occurred in his heart: a sixth-stage Dou Disciple, could it be her?

Ya Fei's astonished exclamation from the side happened to confirm his speculation.

"Nalan Yanran?"