Overlord of the Wilderness

After purchasing a large batch of Elixirs, Zhaang Ye would go to the Library Pavilion every morning to read Martial Arts Secret Manuals for four hours. After returning, he would spend two hours organizing what he had read, then six hours practicing the Reverse Flow Slash, and another four hours cultivating the Dragon Elephant Skill.

Of the remaining eight hours, a small portion was used for sleeping and eating, while most of the time was spent cultivating his Inner Power. As for the cultivation lectures arranged by the family, Zhaang Ye simply skipped them.

Day by day, with his astonishing Comprehension, Zhaang Ye read through more than ninety low-level Saber Techniques, greatly broadening his horizons. In addition, he also skimmed through over a dozen low-level body techniques and footwork, and even specifically looked into Body Refining Techniques, memorizing many cultivation tips and methods to speed up his training.

Zhaang Ye’s gaze slowly grew profound. He no longer looked like a thirteen-year-old boy, but rather a middle-aged man who had experienced much and seen the ways of the world.

His gaze had changed, and his aura had also slowly grown sharp. Zhaang Ye himself was like a sharp blade. Though he held no saber in his hand, his every move exuded a sense of danger, as if he could cut someone at any moment.

As his eyes and temperament changed, Zhaang Ye’s palms were also transforming, slowly turning a pale yellow. This was the very sign of achieving success in cultivating the Dragon Elephant Skill.

Two months later, Zhaang Ye had unknowingly aged a year, becoming a fourteen-year-old youth. Much of the childishness had faded from his face, replaced by an ever-increasing fortitude.

With a WHOOSH, Zhaang Ye exhaled a long stream of white air, then leaped up from the ground. He waved his palms lightly through the air, and two brilliant yellow afterimages instantly streaked through the void, as if someone had scattered a handful of golden sand.

Looking at his now-golden palms, Zhaang Ye couldn’t help but feel a pang of frustration. With the help of a massive amount of Elixirs, Zhaang Ye had finally cultivated the Dragon Elephant Skill to the 2nd Layer a month ago. He had then planned to push through and cultivate the Dragon Elephant Skill to the 3rd Layer in one go. But in the end, Zhaang Ye had still underestimated just how ruinously expensive the Dragon Elephant Skill was. The Elixirs he bought were nearly all used up, yet he still couldn’t break through to the 3rd Layer.

Failing to reach the 3rd Layer of the Dragon Elephant Skill left Zhaang Ye a little dejected. But when he thought about his Cultivation and Saber Technique, he grew excited again.

For two consecutive months, he had been cultivating by taking Qi Gathering Pills every day—a luxury that even disciples marked for special training couldn’t enjoy. With the help of the Elixirs, the True Qi inside Zhaang Ye’s body had increased tremendously. His Meridians were so full of True Qi that they felt somewhat swollen, and his Dantian was exceptionally full. Although he was still some distance from the Late-stage Martial Arts Third Layer, he wasn’t far off.

What satisfied Zhaang Ye the most was still his Saber Technique. After long hours of arduous practice, his ”Reverse Flow Slash” had been sufficiently honed and had entered the Great Success Realm. When the Great Success Realm ”Reverse Flow Slash” and ”Gentle Wind Slash” were used alternately, their continuity greatly increased their power. Zhaang Ye estimated that his current combat strength had doubled compared to two months ago.

Two months of cultivation had yielded great rewards, but the expenses were also immense. Zhaang Ye now only had about thirty-odd Qi Gathering Pills of any value left; all his other Elixirs were gone. Of the 200,000 taels of Gold he had brought when he joined the Cyan Mulberry Zhaang Family, only 20,000 remained. While not exactly broke, he wasn’t far from it.

’Cultivation is really expensive! Looks like I need to consider doing some family missions to earn a little extra on the side. Otherwise, it won’t be long before I’m completely out of resources...’ Zhaang Ye mused to himself.

The so-called family missions were tasks issued internally by the Cyan Mulberry Zhaang Family. These tasks included things like gathering herbs, mining, escorting designated individuals, protecting specific people, and assassinating certain enemies. Upon completion, one would receive a certain reward. Some high-risk missions offered particularly generous rewards, often tens of thousands of taels of Gold.

Once Outer Disciples passed their six-month novice period, the family no longer provided any benefits. To obtain Gold and Elixirs, they had to honestly take on family missions and fend for themselves.

Before, when Zhaang Ye had just joined and his pockets were full of Golden Tickets, he naturally wouldn’t have considered taking on family missions. Now that his strength had increased considerably and he was short on silver, the thought of family missions came to him naturally.

With his mind set on taking a family mission, Zhaang Ye didn’t hesitate. He pushed open the door, preparing to head to the Family Mission Announcement Hall to have a look. But the very instant Zhaang Ye stepped out the door, his gaze flickered!

He heard the sound of monstrous waves crashing against a shore!

Cyan Mulberry City was situated on a plain, countless miles from any ocean. On this vast plain, where could the sound of crashing waves come from?

Zhaang Ye had no time to think, because as soon as the sound of crashing waves appeared, the space above his head suddenly darkened. An endless, gale-force wind, like one massive wave after another, abruptly surged toward him!

In that instant, Zhaang Ye understood—it was an ambush!

Zhaang Ye shouted, ”Who’s there!” With a flick of his hand, the ”Reverse Flow Slash” he had practiced millions of times was unleashed in a smooth motion, cutting upward from below with unstoppable momentum!

Zhaang Ye’s ”Reverse Flow Slash” took its name from the concept of striking against the current beneath a waterfall. As Zhaang Ye struck, his two palms, propelled by True Qi, actually emitted two light, metallic chimes. The gale-force wind pressing down from above was forcefully cleaved into three sections by his palms!

BOOM!

After slicing through the gale, Zhaang Ye’s palms collided fiercely with two other palms pressing down from the air. Amidst the loud crash of Powerful Qi clashing, Zhaang Ye grunted and retreated seven steps. As for the owner of the other palms, they were sent flying into the sky by Zhaang Ye’s two Hand Blade strikes, landing distantly on a large tree.

Zhaang Ye looked over and saw that the person who had just attacked him was a young man in his twenties. The man’s aura was deep and condensed, his Cultivation seemed unfathomably profound, and just by standing there in the distance, he projected an extraordinary presence. But what drew Zhaang Ye’s attention the most were the man’s palms. They were slightly larger than a normal person’s and shimmered with a faint green light, looking chilling and extremely eye-catching.

The young man’s gaze shot over, sharp as a chilling sword. Zhaang Ye met his gaze without any sign of weakness, his own eyes incomparably sharp, like a drawn saber.

The two stared at each other for a moment, both secretly wary of the other.

’In that last exchange, although my opponent didn’t use his full strength, his power was still no small matter. Even using the ”Reverse Flow Slash,” I was forced back seven steps. If my Cultivation hadn’t improved recently, I’m afraid my Meridians would have been injured by his outrageously ferocious Palm Power.’

The young man was also secretly astonished. ’In those two palm strikes just now, I used sixty percent of my strength, and it was a surprise attack, yet Zhaang Ye actually managed to block it head-on. Not only did he block it, but the True Qi transmitted from Zhaang Ye’s palms was exceptionally condensed, stabbing at me like needles. Even with my level of Cultivation, that True Qi made my palms go numb.’

’If I hadn’t experienced it myself, I would never have believed that with my Cultivation at the Peak of Martial Arts Third Layer, I couldn’t even injure someone at the Martial Arts Third Layer Middle Stage.’

Thinking about how Zhaang Ye was only fourteen yet possessed such incredible strength, a trace of jealousy inevitably rose in the young man’s heart.

SHIING!

Zhaang Ye flicked his wrist and drew his Thick-Backed Saber. The sound of the Thick-Backed Saber leaving its sheath broke the silence between them.

Seeing Zhaang Ye draw his Thick-Backed Saber, a grave expression appeared in the young man’s eyes. Moments ago, Zhaang Ye had used his hand as a blade and was still able to execute such a sharp technique, forcefully cleaving through his Palm Power. If he were to use the Thick-Backed Saber, his Attack Power would increase severalfold. Even with the young man’s strength, he had to treat this seriously.

A blazing fighting spirit burned in Zhaang Ye’s eyes, and a similar fire raged in the young man’s.

Just as a great battle was about to erupt between the two, a voice suddenly called out from afar, ”Hold on! Younger Brother Zhaang, please don’t attack just yet. We’ve come with an important matter to discuss.”

As the voice spoke, a bare-chested giant of a man approached from the distance. This giant was none other than Pan Shi.

Having not seen him for over two months, Pan Shi’s aura had grown much stronger. The muscles on his upper body looked no different from metal. Clearly, in these two months, his strength had also improved considerably, advancing to the Peak of Martial Arts Third Layer.

(Thanks to Meng Meng Beast for the reward, and also to book friend 120110182420689. Thank you, brothers, for the Recommendation Tickets, thank you!)