Cloud Step

Li Yi curled his lip and said, "Well, if I'm on a pirate ship, I'm on a pirate ship. However, the final outcome doesn't matter much to me. All I want is for the Nalan family to agree to call off the engagement. As for now, let's see what special qualities this Mr. Nalan He has, so as not to waste his brother's kindness!" After saying this, Li Yi casually sifted through the pile of scrolls, then finally tossed the last one to The Serpent Venerable.

The Serpent Venerable lightly tapped his right hand, and a stream of blood-colored Dou Qi spread out, enveloping the scroll and quickly flipping through it. After a moment, he seemed somewhat surprised, took a slight breath, and murmured, "Nalan He! Born with dual attributes of fire and wind, began cultivating at the age of five, formed a Dou Qi whirlwind at eight, became a Fighter, broke through five crystals at twelve, and then one crystal a year, reaching the peak of Fighter by the age of sixteen. During a visit to Yunshui City, the vice president of Rolan Academy recognized his extraordinary talent and took him under his wing. After four years of secluded cultivation at Rolan Academy, it was learned through certain channels that he practiced a rare dual-attribute technique of fire and wind, Phoenix Blaze! Although this technique is only mid-Zhuque level, because of the dual-attribute cultivation, its power and Dou Qi content can almost match that of a regular high-Zhuque technique, and if fully mastered, it can be comparable to a low-Baihu technique."

"Besides the technique, Nalan He's combat skill cultivation is quite mixed. Although he mainly cultivates fire and wind combat skills, he also dabbles in various support combat skills. When fighting Nalan He, what needs the most attention is not his extremely fast wind combat skills or his powerful fire combat skills, but his endless array of tricky combat skills. There have been rumors that Nalan He even knows an extremely rare illusion combat skill, but the truth of this is unclear."

"Due to his relationship as a disciple of the vice president of Rolan Academy, there's a high chance he will use his signature combat skill, a high-Zhuque level fire technique, Sun Scorches the City. This combat skill is terrifyingly powerful, rumored to be able to destroy a city at its peak, so be very careful."

"Moreover, Nalan He is cunning, vicious, and extremely deceitful. When fighting him, you must not be complacent. He is best at finding a way out in adversity, finding a sliver of hope among a hundred deaths. In his four years at Rolan Academy, he spent two years in killing, his combat experience is incomparably rich, and must be paid great attention to..."

After The Serpent Venerable slowly finished reading, Li Yi let out a sigh and said in a deep voice, "This Nalan He is indeed terrifying. I underestimated him. With such a terrifying talent, now even if he is a King class fighter, I believe it."

The Serpent Venerable said indifferently, "Not to the extent of a King class fighter, but definitely a Warrior class fighter. As for how many crystals of a Warrior he is, that's something I can't see through... However, strength isn't the only difficult part about Nalan He. The formidable part about him lies in his talent."

Li Yi frowned and said, "How so?"

The Serpent Venerable pondered for a moment, then said, "On the Martial Deity Continent, there are nine systems of Dou Qi... The fire system is for killing, and the wind system is for agility. Both of these Dou Qi attributes are quite common. It's normal for any one of them to appear in a person, but for both to appear in one person is not as simple as one in ten thousand. You should know, people born with dual attributes are extremely rare, and even if there are any, due to imbalances or conflicts between the attributes within their body, which results in them only being able to cultivate one type of Dou Qi, their talent would actually be inferior to ordinary people. But for someone like Nalan He, who cultivates both attributes, the only reason is that the Dou Qi of both fire and wind attributes not only complement each other, but more importantly, he has reached a point where the two attributes within his body enhance each other, fire boosting wind's power, and wind boosting fire's might! Under such complementary conditions, it would be hard for him not to be extraordinary. Moreover, fire combat skills always emphasize the power of killing, known among the nine systems for having the highest attack power, and wind is known for being the most agile. With both attributes, he can achieve a balance of power and speed! Not to mention he knows a lot of combat skills, even if he didn't, just relying on ordinary attacks, he would be extremely difficult to deal with..."

"But speaking of which?" The Serpent Venerable hesitated for a moment before continuing, "The two items Nalan Qing gave you are actually targeted at these dual attributes of fire and wind. The agility of the wind attribute can basically be handled with the Soul Severing Blade, capable of both close and long-range attacks, and the ferocity of the fire attribute can be dealt with by using Cloud Step to dodge. Plus, although you're currently practicing the Heavenly Demon Nine Transformations, because you absorbed the Dou Qi seed of a fallen Emperor, your Dou Qi attribute has changed to the lightning attribute, which has a paralyzing effect, not bad against wind attribute..."

"All in all, it seems he won't have much of an advantage over you, and you're not much worse off. Everything will have to be proven in actual combat... However, if I were to assist you, it wouldn't be hard for you to win, but are you willing?" The Serpent Venerable said indifferently.

Li Yi gave a cold smile and said, "I've rarely encountered such a worthy opponent. How could I live with myself if I don't defeat him personally? If I win with your power, Old Coot, I wouldn't have the face to go back and see my cousin Li Bing... Old Coot, let me be clear, this is a fight between men. Even if I'm about to die, you're not allowed to intervene!"

The Serpent Venerable said indifferently, "It's not that easy for you to die, kid... I don't believe that a disciple trained by me would be inferior to a student of Rolan Academy! Hmph! But, with only three days left, cultivating in seclusion won't have much effect. Your own set of combat skills is weird enough, so just master this Cloud Step, as a surprise for Nalan He!"

Li Yi smiled lightly and said, "Naturally, after all, the opponent has dual attributes of fire and wind... I'll be as fast as I can be."

The Serpent Venerable nodded slightly, and with a casual flick, a stream of Dou Qi twisted out, causing the Cloud Step scroll floating in mid-air to suddenly brighten, then transform into a stream of information, flowing into Li Yi from his forehead. Li Yi's head ached, but he couldn't help cursing under his breath, "Old Coot! You're wasting money again!" Moments later, Li Yi had calmed down, and the chaotic stream of information in his mind quickly merged together, forming bright characters that flickered continuously. Above the characters, there was a vague figure moving through the void with strange steps, starting extremely slowly but eventually moving almost like a phantom... "Is this Cloud Step?" Li Yi suddenly opened his eyes, which then brightened slightly. He had always thought his own Phantom Kill was extremely powerful, but compared to this bizarre Cloud Step, he found it somewhat lacking. It wasn't that Li Yi was inferior to the creator of Cloud Step, but that Li Yi's world in his previous life was entirely different from the Martial Deity Continent. Phantom Kill relied on physical strength to push the body's speed to certain limits, while Cloud Step used the Dou Qi in the body to resonate with the Yuanqi of heaven and earth around, allowing oneself to "merge" into the Yuanqi of heaven and earth. Although it couldn't be gathered and dispersed at will, it was definitely extremely agile!

"Indeed interesting!" Li Yi smiled lightly. For him, not being as good as others in Phantom Kill didn't cause any sense of defeat but instead slightly excited him. Quickly, the principles of Cloud Step flowed through his mind again, and then his right hand swiftly formed several seals, and he uttered softly, "Cloud Step!"

"Shh—" His physical body, which was originally solid, seemed somewhat illusory this time. As he stepped forward, his figure weirdly slid out, moving as if it had entered into the void. When he stopped again, he flashed out. At this moment, Li Yi felt his senses were incredibly sharp, as if he could sense any fluctuation of the Yuanqi of heaven and earth. The Serpent Venerable, who had been floating nearby and watching, suddenly let out a laugh.

Li Yi frowned and asked, "Old Coot, what are you laughing at?"

The Serpent Venerable chuckled and said, "Kid, you call that Cloud Step? I think Cat Step might be more appropriate! If you use such a move in combat, what's the difference between you charging to your death?"

Li Yi smiled awkwardly and said, "I'm just practicing, okay? How good can it be the first time?"

The Serpent Venerable said indifferently, "Don't forget, you have a duel in three days. Life and death battles are not to be taken lightly. But I don't blame you, movement combat skills are rare and not easy to cultivate... However, kid, I suddenly have a good idea that might help you quickly master Cloud Step. Are you interested?"

Li Yi's eyes lit up, "What's the method?"

The Serpent Venerable chuckled and said, "This method is simple... I'll allow you to use the Soul Severing Blade while practicing Cloud Step, remember... I won't be holding back!"

As soon as he finished speaking, The Serpent Venerable swung his hand, and a stream of blood-colored Dou Qi formed into a whip, fiercely lashing towards Li Yi!

"Remember, kid! It's better not to use your own weird combat skills if you want to practice!" Li Yi's face slightly changed, sensing The Serpent Venerable was putting in effort this time. If hit by that whip, he might not need to get out of bed for three days! Thinking this, his figure instinctively dodged, but after a moment, he suddenly stopped, a strange look crossing his face. His right hand rapidly changed, forming a seal!

"Cloud Step!"

"Shh—" Li Yi's illusory figure flashed to the side, but before he could settle, The Serpent Venerable's whip, as if sentient, coiled towards the point he was about to land!

"Damn! This Old Coot is still so twisted!" Li Yi cursed in his mind, but he also knew that in such a situation, the key was his still shallow understanding of Cloud Step, knowing the form but not the essence, and his body instinctively using Phantom Kill, hence the awkwardness. If such a situation occurred in real combat, it would truly be a death without understanding how!

"Let's do this!" With a fierce wave of his right hand, the Soul Severing Blade hidden in his sleeve flashed out like a whip, colliding fiercely with The Serpent Venerable's Dou Qi whip, producing a crisp sound!

"Damn it! Just consider it practicing Cloud Step and Soul Severing Blade together!" Li Yi's figure flashed again, this time retreating. This time, he held the Soul Severing Blade in his hand, sharply turning to strike The Serpent Venerable's Dou Qi whip!

"Ding—" Purple Dou Qi flickered with lightning, but it didn't dissipate much force...

"Cloud... pfft..." The Serpent Venerable's whip moved even faster. Li Yi was too late to resist, not even having time to form seals, and his figure was whipped, crashing heavily against the wall, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

"Kid, in combat, there won't be anyone waiting for you to slowly form seals..." The Serpent Venerable said with a light laugh, "Generally speaking, you have to train movement combat skills to the point where the technique follows your heart, and the spirit follows your thoughts to be considered a minor achievement... You're still too green! Let's continue!"

"Shh—" The Dou Qi whip lashed out again!

"Damn! Old Coot, are you trying to murder me?!" Li Yi cursed lowly, this time, he didn't have time to form hand seals, his figure already shifting to one side...

"Cloud Step!" "Again!" "Cloud Step!!!" "Continue!" "Cloud Step! I cloud your [expletive]!"

In the hall, an illusory figure was continuously whipped against the wall by a stream of Dou Qi whip, then leaped up again. Inside the room, the blade shadow of the Soul Severing Blade and the Dou Qi whip collided, sparks flying everywhere...