Hai Bodong didn't give El a chance to land or even breathe. Quickly, the blades of ice surrounding him shot towards the sky, catching up with El who was in midair.
In the air, White Fire swung vigorously, creating streaks of purple flames that burned and destroyed all the ice blades that Hai Bodong launched.
After all the ice blades were destroyed, El released his grip on the hilt of White Fire. The sword floated and flew right behind his feet, providing a temporary foothold.
Purple Dou Qi mixed with Beast Flame immediately gathered in El's right hand. With one powerful stomp, El launched towards Hai Bodong, full of speed.
"Octane Blast: 1 pile of explosions!" said El, sending out his fist with tremendous force.
Seeing the attack, Hai Bodong was not surprised. Quickly, he used the familiar Dou Ice Technique. "Mysterious Ice Mirror!" shouted Hai Bodong in a cold tone.
With this technique, Hai Bodong could reflect his opponent's physical attacks, reversing the direction of the attack with the power of ice.
BOOM!
A loud boom shook the air, breaking the silence. However, in the next second, El was knocked backwards by the reversal of the attack from the Hai Bodong Technical Dou.
El spun several times in the air before finally landing stably on the sand. However, Hai Bodong did not give him the slightest pause. Blades of ice were again created around him, speeding like projectiles towards El.
Without hesitation, the White Fire that was previously floating in the air was immediately controlled.
The sword spun quickly like an airplane propeller, creating a circle of protection around El, destroying all the approaching ice blades.
Crack! Crack!
The shattered ice melted instantly as it came into contact with the Beast Flame surrounding the blade.
"Boy, your tricks are quite efficient in battle," said Hai Bodong, his eyes narrowed sharply.
Due to the effect of the previous reversal, El's right hand throbbed, slightly numb.
El smiled faintly. "Old man," he called out in a casual tone. "You're also very strong."
As soon as the words came out, El immediately moved. His speed increased sharply, both hands flowed with Dou Qi, strengthened by the Beast Flame: Accompanying Purple Essence, creating a layer of pulsating heat energy around his fists.
Seeing El approaching, Hai Bodong reacted immediately. Blades of ice were again created around him, then in one fell swoop, they all shot towards El.
However, White Fire moved automatically again, spinning quickly to protect El, destroying all the approaching ice blades without leaving a single one.
As soon as he reached the attacking distance, El immediately sent a fist towards Hai Bodong, while the precision-controlled White Fire stabbed sharply spinning like a drill bit from above, targeting the opponent's defense gap.
"Heh, same trick!" said Hai Bodong in a cold tone.
Quickly, Hai Bodong created the Condensed Ice Mirror, an even stronger defense technique than the Mysterious Ice Mirror. This ice barrier not only protected his body, but also reflected physical attacks that hit him.
BOOM!
The impact of the attack created a loud boom once again. But, this time El and White Fire were pushed back slightly, while El's hand again felt the numbness from the reflected attack.
However, instead of retreating, El stood his ground and launched another barrage of punches at Hai Bodong's ice barrier.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Each blow struck the ice barrier with tremendous force, shaking its defensive structure, even as each strike numbed El's hand.
Until finally...
Crack!
Small cracks appeared on the surface of the barrier. Hai Bodong frowned, his eyes narrowing sharply. "Crack?" he muttered, not expecting that this boy's attack could shake his defenses.
Seeing this golden opening, El immediately controlled White Fire back into his grasp. As soon as the sword touched his palm, the purple Beast Flame that enveloped it burned even more, its intensity soaring sharply.
In one swift motion, El swung White Fire, reinforcing her slash with Beast Flame, Dou Qi, and Demon Hunter Technique. Stripes of purple flames were created as long as the White Fire was swung.
"Enbu!" (Dance!) he exclaimed firmly.
Crack!
The ice barrier of the Condensed Ice Mirror instantly cracked and shattered into pieces.
Wasting no time, El again swung White Fire in two consecutive horizontally curved slashes.
"Retsujitsu Kōkyo!"
Seeing the attack, Hai Bodong immediately jumped backwards to dodge. However, that slash was no ordinary Retsujitsu Kōkyo, El had combined it with Hirin Kagerō, a technique that envelops the sword blade in a heat haze, making the length and direction of the attack difficult to predict.
Swish!
Despite managing to retreat, Hai Bodong's clothes were torn, and a thin slash wound appeared on the surface of his skin. The wound was not deep, El had deliberately restrained his strength.
If El was really serious, from the beginning the Six Path Rinnegan Technique would have been activated. Even Amaterasu could instantly burn Hai Bodong without mercy.
A single attack like Shinra Tensei could brutally crush him, or Chibaku Tensei could confine him without a fight.
Hai Bodong is not a normal peak Dou Ling, an existence as powerful as an ordinary early 4th level authority. Thus, it was not superfluous to utilize the Six Path in battle.
Using one of the two when fighting Hai Bodong while his Dou Qi was sealed was more than enough.
With his acting already perfectly honed, even a veteran fighter like Hai Bodong would not realize that El was not fighting seriously to begin with.
Hai Bodong stared at the thin wound on his body before chuckling, his voice filled with interest.
"Hahaha... Boy, you're really interesting," he said with a grin. "Looks like you still have a lot of tricks up your sleeve."
Hai Bodong's gaze sharpened, no longer merely testing, but now filled with curiosity. For the first time in a long time, he felt challenged to face someone younger than him.
"You make me want to see the true extent of your abilities," he added, icy Dou Qi again rushing around his body, the air around him freezing even further.
Hearing Hai Bodong's praise, El released White Fire's grip on the hilt, making the sword float nimbly around his body.
El then clenched both hands in front of her chest and bowed slightly, "Ji is very flattered, Old Man. But, regarding the map of Medusa's former domain, Ji wants it."
"Hahaha," Hai Bodong laughed loudly, a voice that echoed with confidence. "Boy. I admit, your physique can go up against peak Dou Ling, even middle Dou Wang!"
A grin appeared on Hai Bodong's face, showing a sense of admiration and a hint of challenge. "In life, I've never seen someone forge a physique to such an extreme degree as yours."
A sharp smile grinned on his face. "Alright. If you can survive this attack, I'll give you what you want!"
With that, more intense icy Dou Qi gushed out from Hai Bodong's body, the atmosphere becoming colder and tenser, contrasting with the surrounding desert.
Hai Bodong stretched out both his hands, ice-type Dou Qi condensed on his palms, growing denser and rippling with intimidating energy.
Slowly, Hai Bodong brought his palms together, triggering a burst of power that made the air around him tremble.
Within seconds, blades of ice sprung up, spinning wildly around his body. A typhoon rolled in, bringing a chill that pierced to the bone.
"Try to fight this, boy!" exclaimed Hai Bodong in a tone full of satisfaction, his smile growing, looking forward to how El would deal with his attack.