"Bang!"
A fist slammed into the head of a first-level wild boar, and Chen Xuan pulled his fist out of the boar's skull, splattering blood everywhere.
It had been two days since Chen Xuan arrived at the Sunset Mountains. He had been wandering around the outskirts, not daring to venture deeper. He started by picking off some low-level monsters to practice his skills, and this was the tenth one he had killed.
It was time to go deeper. After tidying up the boar's body and extracting its core, Chen Xuan continued forward. These two days had been spent in constant battles, killing low-level monsters. When he got hungry, he ate some dry rations, and when he got thirsty, he drank spring water.
As he moved further in, the monsters became stronger. It was said that there were even demon beasts lurking in the Sunset Mountains.
Ahead, there was movement. Chen Xuan cautiously moved forward, his steel knife at the ready. He saw a colorful tiger rushing towards him at full speed.
It was a third-level monster, a colorful tiger. Before leaving, Chen Xuan had bought a book about the continent, so he knew about the levels of monsters. The colorful tiger roared when it saw someone blocking its path and pounced towards Chen Xuan.
"You dare!"
Chen Xuan dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the tiger's attack. The tiger turned around and lunged at Chen Xuan again. This time, Chen Xuan didn't intend to dodge. He dodged lightly to the side and slashed his steel knife at the tiger's waist, leaving a deep wound visible to the bone.
This strike had used eighty percent of his strength, yet it hadn't cut the tiger in half. The beast's body was tougher than expected.
"You don't need to compete in strength with it!"
At that moment, Li Lao's voice rang in Chen Xuan's mind.
"Forget that I told you to practice with the knife? Every monster has its weakness. If you continue to hack away at them like you did just now, even if you kill the monster, you'll exhaust most of your true power. You're such a foolish kid. The highest realm is to defeat your opponent with the least amount of effort. You'll waste your effort with all those flashy moves. The purpose of martial arts is to deliver a fatal blow with one strike. What use is it to hack randomly with a knife?" Li Lao scolded angrily.
"I understand," Chen Xuan replied.
Concentrating his energy, he gripped his knife tightly, his eyes fixed on the colorful tiger.
The tiger, now injured, was even more ferocious. It roared and lunged at Chen Xuan.
In Chen Xuan's eyes, the tiger seemed to grow larger, and with a swish, there was a sound of flesh being torn apart.
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"Wu..."
The tiger fell to the ground in pain, a fine wound on its neck. Chen Xuan's knife had sliced through its neck, delivering a fatal blow.
"Kid, that's how you do it. If you continue to hack away at the tiger like before, how much true power do you think you'll have left after you kill it?" Li Lao's voice echoed.
"Old man, you taught me to throw stones into a small basket every day, and to practice my knife skills at the same spot every day. Is that a martial art?" Chen Xuan asked.
"That's not a martial art; it's just basic training. It lays the foundation for future martial arts practice, making it faster for you to learn martial arts in the future," Li Lao replied.
"What was the martial art I just used?" Chen Xuan asked eagerly.
"You're not dumb after all. You know that the strike you just made was a martial art. It was the first move of my renowned technique, the Seven Kills Knife—'Wind Slash.' When mastered, it can cut through the wind. You've been saying that I haven't been teaching you martial arts, but what do you think that was?" Li Lao retorted.
"Then teach me the next six moves quickly!" Chen Xuan urged.
"It's not that I don't want to teach you, but I've been conflicted about it for some time now. This Seven Kills Knife technique is too domineering, every strike draws blood. Each one is lethal. Many people died under this technique back then. Few survived the battles with me, earning me the title of Knife Demon. I don't want you to become a killer like I was!" Li Lao said helplessly.
"I promise you, I won't provoke people for no reason, and I won't kill without cause," Chen Xuan hastily promised.
"Unless you master this set of knife techniques to the point where you and the knife are one, and you control the killing intent. Back then, even though I mastered it, I still couldn't control the urge to kill. Everyone who fought me died under my knife. It wasn't until I was besieged and chose to self-destruct to escape to Earth!" Li Lao explained.
"Have you thought it over? Are you sure you want to practice?" Li Lao asked.
"I've thought it over," Chen Xuan replied.
After all, having lived two lives, Chen Xuan's thoughts were different from those of ordinary people. The usefulness of martial arts depended on the person using them. In the hands of a kind-hearted person, it wasn't a killing technique. In the hands of an evil person, it would become a weapon for murder. The key lay in the person's own moral quality.
"Your mastery of the first move is not yet proficient. Once you master it, I'll teach you the second move. The third move will have to wait until you reach the Spirit Martial Realm. Even if I teach you, you won't be able to learn it," Li Lao said helplessly.
Listening to Li Lao's tone, he was very reluctant to pass on the techniques to Chen Xuan. After all, Li Lao didn't want Chen Xuan to follow the same path he had taken.
"For the next period of time, hone your Wind Slash. Third-level monsters won't pose a threat to you anymore. Continue to advance!" Li Lao instructed.
Chen Xuan continued deeper into the mountains, where a sixth-level monster, the Great Strength Ape, blocked his path.
"Strike."
"Withdraw."
The Great Strength Ape fell under Chen Xuan's feet. It felt like he was back in the training arena, repeating the strikes and withdrawals. Each strike from Chen Xuan was faster and more precise than the last, almost always fatal. With each strike, a monster fell, and he didn't waste a second strike. Old Li repeatedly guided him on the posture of his strikes.
It had been ten days since Chen Xuan arrived in the Monster Mountain Range. He spent his days hunting monsters and his nights practicing the Swallowing Heaven Technique. Chen Xuan felt he was close to breaking through to the sixth level, just needing the right opportunity.
The fifth and sixth-level monsters posed no great danger. Chen Xuan decided to challenge his limits by facing a seventh-level monster. It was only under pressure that he could push himself faster. With the family constantly facing danger, he needed to grow as quickly as possible.
As Chen Xuan approached a stream to drink water, some fifth and sixth-level monsters were already there. He didn't actively hunt them down. What he needed now were monsters that could put pressure on him. Suddenly, a wolf howl echoed.
"Howl..."
The monsters scattered, and a wolf the size of a calf with red fur all over its body appeared by the stream, scaring away all the other monsters. Chen Xuan hid behind a tree, observing the approaching monster.
The Fire Wolf, a seventh-level monster capable of spitting fireballs, matched the description Chen Xuan had read in the continent's log.
"You're my pick!"
Chen Xuan stepped out from behind the tree. The Fire Wolf, seeing someone approaching, roared, baring its teeth as it lunged towards him.
"Wind Slash!"
Chen Xuan struck, but the Fire Wolf was much faster than sixth-level monsters. The strike didn't land on the wolf's neck but on its back, missing its vital point.
The Fire Wolf roared again and spat out a blazing fireball. Chen Xuan rolled on the ground in a desperate dodge, narrowly avoiding the attack.
Chen Xuan retaliated with his own fire, feeling pressured like never before. He picked up his steel sword and struck at the Fire Wolf.
Facing a seventh-level monster was indeed challenging. The Fire Wolf's speed made it difficult for Chen Xuan to strike at its vital points. Nearby trees caught fire from the fireballs spat by the Fire Wolf.
Chen Xuan found himself increasingly exhilarated by the fight, feeling that the sixth rank was within his reach. He resolved to find a body technique to practice after returning this time; his speed was too slow.