Dante then began to follow that training routine. From five in the morning until two in the afternoon, he trained with Tyler. Three of those hours were used to improve the four techniques and to use the Spiritual Fire Pool to raise the level of his physical body.
Around eight o'clock, he began training directly with Tyler. First came combat-focused training. Tyler once again assigned exercises to strengthen Dante's foundation, as well as engaging him in physical combat.
Next came elemental training. Lava was truly unstable, so the more training, the better. Dante began to learn how to control it and apply it in combat.
At the end of his training with Tyler, Dante began training with the Fifth Elder. The old man was a true master of fire and a rare level-2 artifact refiner—the only one in the village. His talent in this field was immense; even though he was only a quasi–level-2 cultivator, his abilities as an artifact master had already surpassed level 1.
As a lava element user, Dante chose to learn artifact creation. After all, the extremely high temperature of lava greatly facilitated the smelting process.
After training, Dante returned home to stay with Viviane. Unfortunately, part of that time was still used to learn the Conduction Technique, even though he wished to spend every moment cuddling with her.
Within this routine, things progressed well. The seasons changed, life in the village continued as usual, and thus four months passed.
It was the snowy season of the year—the coldest one. This made it the village's most difficult period, whether in terms of resources or food.
At that moment, Dante was fighting Tyler. In the heat of battle, intense temperatures filled the training field, accompanied by bursts of smoke released from Dante's body.
During those four months, his foundation had become stable, and his mastery of the lava element had improved greatly.
Dante advanced with his body partially covered in lava. He then threw a long-distance punch. The moment he acted, four lava projectiles the size of stones shot out from his fist toward Tyler.
But the old man was extremely strong. He punched the ground, causing a curtain of wind to rise and prevent the lava from spreading, then immediately advanced.
"Use more strength, Dante. As a combatant, your focus must be close combat," Tyler said, appearing behind him and striking his ribs with a punch.
The blow felt as if it had struck hot cotton. Dante had manifested lava in that area to block the attack, but the impact still sent him flying.
Boom.
A loud sound echoed from where Dante had been thrown, and in the blink of an eye, he charged at Tyler again.
This time, lava gathered around his arm like a living, pulsing armor. Dante attacked with a barrage of punches.
Each strike carried strength comparable to a true peak six-star cultivator—enough to pressure even a seven-star.
But Tyler was different. Even with equalized cultivation, he broke through the barrage, landing an elbow strike on Dante's hand and breaking several of his fingers.
Strangely, they regenerated quickly, and Dante attacked again. This time, however, something had changed. In his hand, he was gripping a crimson crystal sphere.
When his punch hit Tyler's defense, the red sphere clung to his body.
Boom!
An explosion resounded, and lava erupted.
"Interesting, brat. Using your own inventions in a duel is truly a brilliant idea," Tyler said, advancing without a scratch.
"But do you really think low-level Lava Charges are enough? Never."
He then released a burst of wind with his aura. A violent gust blasted Dante backward.
Knowing he couldn't fight aura head-on, Dante punched the ground and created a lava cocoon around himself. When the aura gust passed, the wind instantly cooled the lava.
Crack.
Dante emerged from the cocoon, shattering it completely, and charged again. He fought like a hunter, constantly pursuing his prey.
Lava began to cover his body, then quickly gathered into his right fist, increasing massively in scale—as if it were a divine avatar of fire. Dante punched.
The enormous lava arm surged toward Tyler, who blocked with his forearms coated in aura. Even so, his body was thrown backward.
However, to a keen observer, something was clear: Dante's mana had reached its limit. That strike was his strongest.
It could break barriers and reach the power of a true seven-star, but the mana consumption was absurd. His reserves, already low after the prolonged duel, dropped to their limit.
Even so, Tyler remained in perfect condition. He advanced to deliver a heavy punch, but as he approached, he saw Dante raise his hands in surrender.
"I give up," Dante said.
"…Damn brat."