The camp was not as bustling as it usually was. At least Xing Kai noticed that there seemed to be fewer people running on the sandy tracks, lifting and throwing boulders, and training with their weapons. Partly was because the recruiting phase had ended and partly was because Hong's faction had retreated to secret places to cultivate with the Yao Grass. Xing Kai strode purposefully to sparring grounds where he had practised swinging his sword over the month. It was the only place the Zhou brothers could be expected to be found during the day.

"Ohh, you're here so soon?" said Roc. The two brothers, dressed in only loose white shirts and black pants, were wrestling together on in the sandy pit beside the straw dummies. Xing Kai looked around the training grounds with a frown. Seeing nobody else nearby, Xing Kai wondered if these two had always been playing like this while no one was watching, or if this was a one-off scuffle he happened to walk on between the brothers.

"I knew you wouldn't resist waiting until tomorrow to begin training" said Hak with his manly, powerful voice.

I want to train in the forest. The Yao Grass was useless and acted out strangely

Xing Kai didn't waste much time and immediately wrote what he wanted.

The two brothers wrinkled their brows and glanced at each other. Suddenly, the note blasted itself into dust in Hak's hands, making Kai stumble back.

"In what way did it act up?" Hak asked seriously.

What the...he can do that?

Xing Kai stared at Hak, his eyes wide open.

It must be a Soul condensing thing

But wait, why didn't that guy do something like that to me?

While Xing Kai's brain worked in over drive at the strange phenomenon he saw, the two swordsmen became unsure of what to do.

"You won't tell us?" Roc asked.

Xing Kai eyes refocused on the two and he quickly gathered his thoughts. He moved to write another note.

The energy just gathered at my throat. It didn't heal it much

Reading this the two didn't appear entirely convinced. With a faint sigh, the note turned to dust in Roc's fingers this time.

I'm really not seeing things

"Will you let us check your neck?" Roc said.

Wait, these two...

Xing Kai began frowning slightly.

Are they that bothered?

Wait, even I was bothered, but is it such a big deal?

Xing Kai hesitated between shaking his head and nodding, as he tried to analyse the two brother's expression. With a reluctant nod, he let Roc place his warm sandy finger against his throat. Xing Kai's pupils were distinctly smaller as he looked up at Roc's face. Xing Kai suddenly felt a current, a wave like sensation, ripple outwards from Roc's fingertips. The curious wave scanned past the throat and returned slowly, yet didn't seem to detect anything.

"I don't know what happened, but there isn't anything different with your neck" Roc said. He removed his fingertips and stepped back while rubbing his chin. "I suppose you're going to have to train in the forest then huh?" Hak looked at his brother in surprise but accepted his judgement without having to check himself.

Can you let Commander Shen Han know?

Xing Kai wrote in the sand this time using his fingers so as to not waste parchment.

"Yeah, we'll take care of all that" Roc replied offhandedly. His eyes were still staring at Xing Kai's throat in a confused manner, which made Xing Kai scratch his neck.

You just said you didn't notice anything so why are you still looking at me like that?

"Anyways...don't enter the forest from anywhere other than the slums and don't go too far" Hak said. He shrugged and then walked off towards the washing rooms without another look back. With a sigh, Roc shook his head, and turned to follow his brother.

"I don't know how much the instructors told you about the dangers of the true forest..." Roc said over his shoulder. "But don't annoy any of the territorial or pack species. Go for the lone predators smaller then yourself. Happy hunting."

Xing Kai watched the two walk away.

Trouble never seems to leave me alone for more then a few minutes at a time.

I come here just to get permission to cultivate outside the town, and instead I get questioned and scanned for strange cultivation abnormalities, and I see things turn to dust for no reason

Xing Kai rubbed his head vigorously before stamping out of the training grounds.

Just once I would like a calm conversation where something unexpected doesn't happen...

....

Xing Kai quickly made his way straight towards the forest, using the shortest route he could to traverse the slums. Soon Kai found the slum reaching its natural stopping point and outline at a thin stream. The stream was very weak but judging from its deep, curving channel and steep walls it had once been a decent sized brook. Leaping from one side to the other, Xing Kai faced the forest.

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The trees were just as tall and thick as those at the forest wall. The tree stumps between the slums and the current forest front were bigger then Xing Kai's eating table, and were already sprouting small trees from its base. Looking further into the forest, Xing Kai could faintly make out a dense sea of green ferns and bushes covering the ground, and huge arcing buttress roots producing fantastical paths through the forest.

There doesn't seem to be any beasts living in the forest fringe, but I better go carefully

Taking stealthy steps towards the forest, Xing Kai drew his sword and cautiously entered.

Forging a safe entry point is best done slowly since I don't have any advice or information about this place

He crept under the tall ferns and looked up at the canopy of leaves which created a dark green sky.

No strange movements...no nests...no structures

Xing Kai optimistically forged a path under the ferns for a further 50 steps before he was stopped cold.

Turn back. Try a few hundred steps further along the forest

Xing Kai very quickly retreated out of the forest, and began walking further down the stream, and then entering the forest again. Not long after Xing Kai had to turn back and find another path into the forest that didn't immediately lead into the territory of beasts.

After several hours and the sun having passed it's apex, Xing Kai was covered in sweat and still no further into the forest.

I've tried every point along this stretch of the forest...any further and I'll be caught.

Xing Kai smirked.

No wonder they said this part of the forest is dangerous even for them

With a stubborn fire in his eyes, Xing Kai walked back up the stream to a place he determined to be the least dangerous. He pushed back into the thick ferns, stepping on any protruding stones and roots to avoid leaving tracks, he managed to reach 20 steps in before he came across the foreboding sign. A trail of trampled and torn up ferns and scarred trees, creating a line which barred Xing Kai's path.

Wild boar territories are not too densely populated so as long as I can lead one away then I can fight it alone...and if too many appear I can still run away easily enough

Xing Kai quickly took off his green officer's coat and wrapped it around his forearm.

A bit of safety eh

Having tied and readjusted his clothes etc he dashed out of the ferns and began climbing a thick twisting tree. Reaching the canopy in a blur, he looked across the dividing mark and beyond to see if there were any boars nearby.

None.

Compressing his body like a spring, Xing Kai launched himself over to a tree several tens of steps away. With a scrambling of hands and feet, he was back among the branches looking for any targets.

Cocky boars...they made their territory too big

Xing Kai leaped even further, enjoying the rushing of wind past his ears as he flew towards another tree. Like this, Xing Kai made his way across multiple trees, traversing hundreds of steps into the forest, before he came across a target.

A red bristled boar with thick tusks close to a meter long.

Sweet

Xing Kai slowed down his excited heart and scoured the ground below him for any other beasts nearby, but was relieved to find none. With a grin appearing on his face, Xing Kai delicately swung from the branches, until he was right above the beast.

From just 15 meters above, Xing Kai could count each thick sharp bristle that lined his vertebrae, and smell the rich smell of dirt on it. The boar reached a height of over a meter and around a meter long too. But it certainly wasn't soft and slow. A cursory look of its rippling legs spoke of its hard earned strength and fighting ability. Currently this adolescent boar was digging beneath the roots of the tree Xing Kai was perched on, so he could clearly see several white blobs appearing in the ground.

White root fungi...they're one of the things that have special properties

Xing Kai was pleasantly surprised, at the lucky encounter. He had another quick look around the ground, and after feeling certain that their were no nearby threats, he dropped beside the boar.

The boar squealed sharply and desperately scrambled away. It eyed Xing Kai furiously after creating several steps space, glancing at the sword and all over Kai's body. With another loud squeal it kicked forwards, barrelling towards Xing Kai, with his tusks raised to gore him.

Xing Kai dodged to the side with ease and sliced deeply into it's flank, creating a fountain of blood. The beast fell and rolled across the ground before smacking into a thick wall-like tree. It shivered and cried in pain.

Just like the Captains, using only one blow to defeat the beasts

The beast immediately made to escape, while crying for help, but Xing Kai pounced with astounding speed and hacked its skull open. With a light flurry of leaves sounding, Kai rolled to the side and calmed his breathing. The familiar sensation of Heart's blood traveling up his Jingmai appeared and was cycled accordingly.

Only equivalent to Middle stage? Unless the Heart's blood is from a Peak stage beast then the blood just won't have much strength

Xing Kai leaped back up a tree and calmly cleaned his blade.

It's strange...this boar's Heart's blood is only Middle stage, yet the beast would obviously have risen to Late eventually...

If the Heart's blood is a animal's, a human's, potential then why is the Heart's blood I extract is only equal in strength to the current cultivation level of the animal or person?

Harsh crashing sounds appeared suddenly from the distance causing Xing Kai to look over. Several boars charged over with flaring nostrils and gnashing teeth. Xing Kai waited and watched as the boars looked about and decided what to do. Xing Kai mulled over different solutions as to why the Heart's blood only had power equal to the current cultivation achieved, while the beasts eventually calmed down.

Xing Kai looked about again, satisfied that no more beasts were coming, before dropping down again from above. Immediately this caused the boars, 5 of them, to gather together. The smallest was the same size as the previous boar that Kai had killed, while 3 were clearly adults, as tall as some men and a full 2 meters long. Even the bristles found on their backs were not ordinary, being as thick as a thumb and a hand long.

3 Late stage and 2 middle huh? It'll be good practise but the Heart's blood is worthless to me

Xing Kai backed up against a wall-like thick tree, large enough that even 10 men couldn't encompass the tree's girth. The boars were not foolish however, and instead steadily encircled Xing Kai. Suddenly two of the adult boars rushed towards Xing Kai, intending to pin him against the tree with their meter long tusks, while the others watched.

With a twinkle in his eyes, Xing Kai leaped over the two charging boars, avoiding the charge that sent shudders into the colossal tree. But the other two younger boars immediately turned about and leaped into the air, intending to deal a fatal blow to Kai's body.

Damn

Xing Kai extended out with his arm, allowing the blow of the leaping boar to land on him so as to also cut a deep wound into its back. The result was that the blow sent Kai flying through the air, and the boar staggered against a tree.

Hai, what a hefty thing, if it was to hit me like that while on the ground-

Before Xing Kai could even get up properly he saw the 3rd adult boar charging straight towards him with great momentum. Xing Kai had just enough time to raise his sword, forcing the boar to dodge to the side. Xing Kai was quick to take advantage, and immediately burst forward with great speed to slay the staggering boar with a hack to the skull.

Pity...Late stage Heart's blood is no good for me

With this sudden thought flashing across his mind, Xing Kai felt a strange pang in his mind which made him feel dizzy.

The 4 other boars rushed towards him with frenzied eyes, closing the gap between them and Xing Kai in little time.

The Heart's blood of the dead boar was not drawn out this time?

Xing Kai looked down at the boar in shock.