Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World

Chapter 118: Chapter 96 Promotion to Blood Refining! Shock Arises!_3

But before anything else.

Hunting cannot be neglected. Earning a little is better than nothing.

...

Another two days passed.

As usual, Gu Sheng ventured into the mountain to hunt. Today, a herbalist had provided information about the whereabouts of a wild boar. Gu Sheng hadn’t gone into the mountains for a while, and so decided to make the trip.

In the forest, Gu Sheng’s figure was as agile as a fox, weaving nimbly through the wooded underbrush. With a slight enhancement from his Qi Blood Power, his senses were sharply attuned.

He felt as though a dragon had plunged into the depths of the sea.

Here in the forest, he didn’t need to completely conceal his strength. The winds rushed past his face as Gu Sheng moved with incredible speed, following the trail provided by the herbalist.

In the past, tracking prey would take Gu Sheng a considerable amount of time.

But now, everything was much easier.

”There it is!”

The trail left by the wild boar beneath Gu Sheng’s feet was growing increasingly visible.

”Squeal! Squeal! Screeeech!”

Suddenly, snarls of pain echoed from farther in front. Gu Sheng’s expression shifted slightly—this meant the wild boar had been attacked. Could it have been intercepted by someone else or perhaps assaulted by a ferocious beast?

Without stopping, Gu Sheng made use of the Snake Breath Skill, compressing his aura to the extreme as he dashed forward at lightning speed.

Now that he had ascended to the Blood Refining Realm, roaming this forest felt akin to a high-level veteran returning to the beginner’s village. Very few creatures posed a threat to him—unless a Bone Refining Realm being appeared.

But such entities were typically found deep within Cang Mountain’s wilderness—not truly part of Cang Mountain anymore, but rather the primordial mountain ranges that connected to other territories of Da Liang.

Gu Sheng’s eyes gleamed with anticipation.

The increasingly clear tracks indicated the attacker wasn’t human nor any sort of supernatural creature, but instead a bear!

”Heaven itself knows I’m short on money and decided to give me a windfall!”

The value of a wild bear was nothing short of extraordinary. Bear gall, bear paws, bear hide—all were rare commodities that could sell for dozens of taels of silver.

Turning a corner, the commotion grew louder. He pushed aside the thick foliage.

A large brown bear immediately came into view.

Gu Sheng’s eyes shone with excitement—it really was a bear!

Yet the sight before him was somewhat gruesome. The towering brown bear, at least a full zhang in height, was ferociously ripping into the wild boar. Its massive paws slammed down with brutal force upon the boar’s skull and spine, as it ravaged the carcass, tearing straight into its gut.

No wonder the wild boar had let out such blood-curdling screams.

By now, the bear had eaten more than half.

The brown bear was preparing for a feast, ready to relish its spoils.

Gu Sheng’s eyes flickered coldly. With the Snake Breath Skill in operation, even the highly perceptive bear had failed to notice his presence.

”You ate my wild boar, so your life will pay the price!”

The six-stone bow slid into Gu Sheng’s hands, and the heavy arrow shone with a gleaming chill as he nocked it effortlessly. With his immense physical strength, Gu Sheng easily pulled the bowstring into a full circle.

Thrum!

The bowstring let out a deep, vibrating hum as the shot was fired. The heavy arrow streaked forth like dark lightning.

Having been crafted with significant expense, the heavy arrow was definitely extraordinary. The combined force of its immense power with the spinning energy of First-level Penetration was perfectly suited to it. The arrowhead was nearly twice as large as an average one, and when it spun, it unleashed devastating might!

Swoosh!

The streaking black lightning surged through the forest. The brown bear, merely enjoying its meal moments ago, suddenly had its fur bristle in alarm, sensing a powerful wave of impending danger!

With a ferocious roar that reverberated through the woodland, its savage eyes locked onto the swiftly approaching arrow. The bear raised its massive paws, attempting to swat and destroy the projectile.

Yet.

The bear’s paw barely lifted when its movements abruptly froze.

The heavy arrow’s power was overwhelming, its speed utterly unstoppable. It pierced through the bear’s raised paw, violently penetrating its skull, and continued through to embed itself deeply into a nearby tree trunk!

One shot. A clean kill.

Thud!

The bear’s massive body collapsed, an enormous weight striking the ground with a muffled sound. Despite its formidable life force, it had been extinguished in just one shot.

Gu Sheng approached slowly, his expression calm and unshaken.

After advancing to the Blood Refining Realm, even ordinary Jade Skin Realm fighters couldn’t withstand a single arrow. While the bear’s life force surpassed that of typical Martial Artists, a one-shot kill wasn’t unheard of.

The Snake Breath Skill provided significant assistance.

If Gu Sheng concealed his breathing and attacked from the shadows, enemies would only notice the arrow itself in the fleeting instant it broke through the air. This meant even Blood Refining Realm fighters held some measure of vulnerability to Gu Sheng’s archery.

The only regret was that Gu Sheng’s arrow techniques were purely foundational, not true Martial Arts. If they were, even Blood Refining Realm Martial Artists would fear him.

Slowly walking up to the bear, Gu Sheng inspected its carcass.

At first, he felt a surge of joy, but his expression quickly shifted.

The bear’s corpse was peculiarly shriveled, unlike what one would expect from a healthy bear. It was no wonder the beast had been so savagely devouring its prey. Gu Sheng recalled the tiger he had hunted earlier this year, which had also displayed similar signs, though not as severe.

This wasn’t the winter season, so it couldn’t be due to seasonal wasting.

He remembered Zhang Ze recounting during a recent gathering that several hunters near the village had bagged tigers and bears exhibiting such abnormalities.

”Something has gone wrong deep in the mountain!”

A chill shot up from Gu Sheng’s soles to the crown of his head, leaving his skin prickling with goosebumps. His spine became icy, and his scalp tingled painfully.

”Time to leave!”

Decisive in his actions.

Gu Sheng hefted the bear’s corpse onto his shoulders and bolted down the mountain.

Running at full speed, Gu Sheng moved with astonishing swiftness, even using Qi Blood Power for extra momentum. Despite the bulk of the bear’s body, he sprinted effortlessly as though something was chasing him from behind.

Gu Sheng dared not relax his vigilance. If something had truly gone awry in the mountains and some kind of supernatural creature had emerged, his Blood Refining Realm cultivation would be utterly insufficient. The demonic wolf hunted near Gu’s Manor in the past paled in comparison to this eerie situation.

Should it indeed be a supernatural presence, it would undoubtedly surpass the power of that demonic wolf.

His thoughts raced furiously as he sprinted onward.

Thankfully.

Gu Sheng descended from the mountain without experiencing any mishaps. When he had gone some distance away, he looked back at Cang Mountain. Only then did the unsettling feeling start to dissipate. He exhaled in relief, silently resolving to himself.

”For the foreseeable future, I won’t be setting foot in Cang Mountain!”