While the player is in Battle Through the Heavens, the system is in The Great Ruler.

Chapter 28 Half a month later, people from the Yunlan Sect arrived.
After Lu Yu and the other person left,

The Mo family was devastated. A middle-aged man dressed in a magnificent brocade robe stood before Mo Cheng's ashes, his face ashen and somber—this was Mo Lan, the current head of the Mo family.

"Chieftain..." the guard commander stepped forward tremblingly, "The Grand Elder shouted 'Snake People' before he died..."

"I witnessed it with my own eyes; the other party used the Snake Sealing Spell, a secret technique passed down by the Snake-People royal family."

Mo Lan's gaze swept coldly across the charred courtyard. His fingertips lightly touched the still-warm broken wall, and his pupils suddenly contracted: "I'm afraid it's not just the Serpent Sealing Curse..."

"This residual temperature..." his voice tightened, "could it be the work of a strange fire?"

These words immediately caused an uproar among the surrounding guards:

"Your subordinate did indeed see crimson flames..."

"No, it's blue!"

"It's clearly a mix of blue and red..."

"Enough!" Mo Lan shouted sharply, suppressing his anger, "Immediately send a message to Yunlan Sect, informing them that the Grand Elder was attacked and killed by a powerful member of the Snake-Man Clan!"

Seeing the hesitation of the crowd, he sneered, "My Mo family has been making offerings every year, how could the Yunlan Sect sit idly by? Besides..."

A glint flashed in his eyes. "So the snake-people clan is said to possess a strange fire. Hasn't Elder Guhe been searching for it all along?"

As soon as the words were spoken, all the guards looked enlightened. Indeed, the Yunlan Sect might not go to such lengths for a mere outer sect steward, but for the strange fire... that sixth-grade alchemist, Pill King Gu He, would definitely take action personally.

Once the strange fire is found, the true culprit who killed the Grand Elder can be found.

But how could the murderer easily give up such a treasure of heaven and earth as the Strange Fire?

"When two tigers fight..." Mo Lan gazed towards the distant Yunlan Mountain, a cold smile curving his lips. "One of them will surely be injured. Since you've blocked the path of my Mo family, even if my Mo family has fallen, we will still take a piece of your snake-people's flesh!"

……

Half a month later,

Stone desert city.

The headquarters of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group.

shhhhhh!
A series of ear-piercing whistles rang out as dozens of ice spikes, each as thick as an arm, shot out from all directions. In the center of the arena, Lu Yu, his green robe fluttering, moved like a dragon through the rain of ice spikes, leaving crimson trails in his wake. Faintly, three crimson afterimages could be seen appearing and disappearing behind him.

Suddenly, with a "sizzle," an ice spike grazed his left arm, tearing a gash in his blue robe. Lu Yu's movements faltered slightly; it was this fleeting opening that caused the attack—

"Oh!"

Three ice cones formed a triangular formation, blocking all escape routes. In his haste, Lu Yu stomped the ground, and a blur of motion exploded beneath his feet. The violent shockwave sent him flying, his clothes ripped to shreds on the back by the aftershock.

"Cough cough..."

Not far away, Lu Yu rolled on the ground in a sorry state, his robes torn in several places, and the afterimages of the explosion were still slowly dissipating in the air, leaving his black hair curly and scorched.

"Boy, are you okay?"

Hai Bodong promptly dismissed the ice spike in his hand, raised an eyebrow, and couldn't help but ask with concern.

"It's alright, it's just that the Heavenly Fire Dragon Step is too difficult to cultivate..."

"I haven't even mastered the basics in half a month..." Lu Yu touched his charred hair, shook his head with a bitter smile.

Upon hearing this, Hai Bodong rolled his eyes at him and said, "Movement techniques are inherently more difficult than ordinary techniques. In my opinion, your movement technique is top-tier even among low-level Earth-rank techniques, making it even more difficult."

"You think you can master it in just half a month? That's wishful thinking!"

Lu Yu gave a wry smile, but he had to admit that it was true.

The Heavenly Fire Dragon Step was a low-level Earth-rank movement technique that he had previously simulated. When used, this technique resembled a blazing dragon, and when mastered, it could create nine afterimages.

These afterimages can not only block enemies with explosions, but also accelerate instantly with the impact. However, precisely because of this, one can easily injure oneself if one is not careful during training, making it far more difficult than ordinary movement techniques.

"In Elder Hai's opinion, is there no quick way to master this fighting technique?"

Lu Yu rubbed his temples and said somewhat unwillingly.

"You're quite greedy, kid. You're not satisfied with such an exquisite movement technique and fighting skill; you want to master it quickly..."

Hai Bodong snorted coldly, but despite his words, a hint of envy flashed in the old man's eyes.

He paused, narrowed his eyes, and said, "However... it's not entirely hopeless."

"Please enlighten me, Elder Hai!" Lu Yu immediately perked up. "In my opinion, the difficulty in cultivating your movement technique lies mainly in two aspects."

Hai Bodong stretched out his withered fingers and slowly said, "First, the battle qi is consumed too much when condensing afterimages. You will be exhausted after cultivating for an hour now. Second, afterimages are difficult to control precisely. If you are not careful, you can easily injure yourself."

The old man stroked his beard slightly and pondered, "If we can find a place with abundant fire-attribute energy, we can reduce the consumption of battle qi. Coupled with a high-level magical beast inner armor or a similar protective treasure, we will not have to worry about backlash... which may make our efforts twice as effective."

"A place rich in fire-attribute energy?" Lu Yu stroked his chin thoughtfully. "A protective treasure?"

His eyes suddenly lit up: "That's it! Isn't that lava lake where we found the Azure Lotus Core Flame a perfect spot?"

"As for armor..."

He silently calculated in his heart, "The one-month deadline has arrived. I have no shortage of offensive methods, and it's time to use simulation to get a decent defensive magical artifact."

"Elder Hai, how about we go to the lava lake where we found the Azure Lotus Platform before and cultivate there?"

Lu Yu snapped out of his daze, turned to look at Hai Bodong, and said with a smile.

Hai Bodong curled his lip and said, "I have no problem with that. But you should remember this well—the incomplete map is one thing, finding the strange fire is another, the Mo family matter is one, and now the sparring is yet another. You only have six things left that you can order me around."

"Yes, bring Qinglin along this time too."

Lu Yu nodded and pondered for a moment.

"That little girl you've been training recently who can control snakes?"

Hai Bodong frowned, then, as if realizing something, said, "You want her to control that magical beast in the lava lake?"

Seeing Lu Yu nod, the old man shook his head and said, "The gap is too big. That's a fourth-tier magical beast, can she handle it?"

"It wouldn't hurt to give it a try." Lu Yu smiled, a deep meaning flashing in his eyes.

"Then let's pack our things, rest for the night, and set off tomorrow."

……

At this time, the Mohist school...

Several figures in black robes stood in mid-air, each one a powerful warrior whose battle aura had transformed into wings.

"I am Mo Lan, greetings to Sect Master Yun and Elder Guhe..." Mo Lan, the head of the Mo family, respectfully clasped his hands in greeting, and the group of Mo family experts behind him also bowed in unison, their postures extremely humble.

Opposite them, Yun Yun stood in the wind, dressed in a simple white dress, surrounded by a light blue swirling breeze. Beside her, Gu He stood with his hands behind his back; his angular face still showed the handsome features of his youth, but the years had given him a more composed demeanor.

Behind him, Windrunner Windwalker and Lion King Lion stood on either side.

"Clan Chief Mo, there's no need for such formalities." Yun Yun nodded slightly, her cool gaze sweeping over the Mo family members below, and asked, "You sent a message saying that the Snake-People Clan possesses a strange fire. Is this true?"

Mo Lan immediately presented a jade box, flatteringly saying, "This is the Grand Elder's ashes, still retaining the aura of a strange fire..."

Yun Yun frowned slightly.

Yan Shi made no attempt to hide his disgust, and said sarcastically, "Even the ashes of his own Great Elder are offered as a treasure. Chief Mo is truly... loyal beyond measure."

Gu He smiled and waved his hand, interrupting him. Looking at the ashes, a strange look appeared in his eyes. He said, "This aura has the smell of magma. It's either the Azure Lotus Earth Core Flame or the volcanic rock flame..."

"I never imagined that the snake-people actually had a secret method to utilize strange fire..."

"It seems Sect Leader Yun was right..."

"Chief Mo, you've done well..."

As he spoke, he took out an exquisite jade bottle from his storage ring and casually tossed it to Mo Lan: "As I said before, anyone who provides information about a different kind of fire will be rewarded with a fifth-grade pill. This fifth-grade Dragon Power Pill can temporarily enhance physical strength, so I'm giving it to you."

The jade bottle traced a graceful arc in the air, and Mo Lan hurriedly reached out to catch it, his face instantly plastered with a fawning smile, bowing even lower: "Thank you so much, Master Guhe, for your generous gift! The entire Mo family..."

"It's just a transaction, no need to thank me."

Gu He interrupted calmly, his gaze already fixed on the depths of the desert. Yan Shi, standing to the side, let out an undisguised snort, his eyes filled with contempt.

Yun Yun gazed thoughtfully at Mo Lan, a hint of doubt flashing in her beautiful eyes.

"Why did the Snake-People want to kill Mo Cheng?" she murmured to herself. "The Mo family... there's probably more to the story..."

……

(End of this chapter)