First Taste of Sharpness

As Yuan Ming watched Wulu approach, he frowned unconsciously, then quickly relaxed his expression.

Wulu's shoulders, chest, and arms were all injured, with some areas still oozing blood. He looked quite disheveled, as if he had just emerged from a fierce battle.

Speaking of which, Wulu seemed to have some special fortune. Although he was still some distance from the first layer of Qi Refining, his overall cultivation speed didn't seem to be any slower than Yuan Ming's.

And the Spotted Fierce Tiger whose beast hide he had obtained was far stronger in overall combat power than the White Ape. It should have been able to deal with ordinary level one low-tier Fierce Beasts with ease. Yuan Ming wondered what exactly Wulu had encountered.

"Elder Huohuo, I'm late. Here is this month's Fierce Beast essence blood," Wulu said, stopping in front of Elder Huohuo and handing over the blood storage bag.

Elder Huohuo seemed not to notice Wulu's pathetic state. He expressionlessly took his five portions of essence blood, tossed back two antidotes, and then summoned a giant bird to leave.

After taking the antidote, Yuan Ming didn't linger and also prepared to turn and leave.

"Brother Yuan, wait a moment. Do you still have that medicinal ointment for healing?" Wulu suddenly called out to Yuan Ming.

"I have one tube left," Yuan Ming stopped.

"That's great! Could you sell it to me? I'll trade you this tube of Soft Bone Poison for it." Wulu's face lit up with joy. He took out a bamboo tube, its opening tightly sealed with beast hide.

"Sure," Yuan Ming replied, taking out a bamboo tube from his embrace and tossing it over.

"Thank you," Wulu hastily caught it and handed over the bamboo tube he was holding.

Yuan Ming opened the bamboo tube and found a bottle more than half full of a viscous, purplish-black liquid.

Since the incident where Yuan Ming saved him last time, their relationship had become much closer, and they had more interactions.

Wulu claimed to come from a small tribe in the Southern Border and knew how to refine some potent poisons. This Soft Bone Poison could make one's muscles and bones weak and was quite effective against Fierce Beasts. Yuan Ming had traded his own formulated healing ointment for it twice and found the results to be good.

"I vaguely heard Elder Huohuo speaking just now. What was he saying?" Wulu asked curiously, glancing in the direction Elder Huohuo had departed.

"I asked Elder Huohuo some questions about Fierce Beasts," Yuan Ming replied.

Since Elder Huohuo hadn't told Wulu about becoming a registered disciple of Jade Luo Cave, Yuan Ming naturally wouldn't blab about it.

The two chatted for a while before leaving the area.

Yuan Ming returned to his cave dwelling and began to plan his next steps.

He had originally intended to travel to other areas of the Hundred Thousand Mountains to find some Furred Beast Slaves and inquire about Jade Luo Cave and the Heart Rot Pill, hoping to find a way to escape this place. After all, he didn't want to remain a coerced beast slave with no future forever.

Now that Elder Huohuo had pointed out a clear path to joining Jade Luo Cave, there was no need for such trouble.

One thousand portions of Fierce Beast essence blood seemed like a lot, but if he reduced his cultivation time, he was confident he could gather it within a year.

"Something doesn't feel right. Jade Luo Cave doesn't seem like an easy sect to deal with. Why would they set such lenient conditions? Any Furred Beast Slave with a bit of strength should be able to complete this task if they're careful," Yuan Ming mused, stroking his chin.

Could there be some hidden aspect he wasn't aware of?

He couldn't figure it out for the moment, so he didn't waste any more time. At the very least, while collecting essence blood, he would cultivate the Nine Yuan Art simultaneously to improve his cultivation as much as possible, which would somewhat enhance his self-preservation abilities in the future.

With this thought, Yuan Ming got up and began packing his belongings in the cave.

This cave dwelling was quite far from the canyon. It took a considerable amount of time for each round trip, so he needed to find a new place to live.

Yuan Ming packed his belongings in the cave with a piece of beast hide and left the cave he had lived in for nearly half a year. However, before leaving, he still blocked the entrance with a large stone.

This place was quite hidden, and it might be useful in the future.

Carrying his beast hide bundle, Yuan Ming headed south and soon arrived near the canyon.

"It won't take much time to cross the canyon. I'll settle down near the canyon instead."

Yuan Ming scanned his surroundings and didn't continue forward, instead searching for a suitable place to live nearby.

Before long, he discovered a winding cave beneath a small earthen hill. It looked like it had been dug out by burrowing beasts like pangolins.

The cave was long and extended to the other side of the earthen hill. Besides the front entrance, there was also a back entrance on the shady side of the hill.

However, the back entrance was quite small, too small for a person to pass through.

Yuan Ming blocked the back entrance with a large stone. Then, he transformed into the White Ape and used his sharp claws to expand the cave space near the main entrance by more than double, forming a rudimentary earthen room.

Fortunately, this small hill was mostly earth with few stones, which saved him a lot of effort. Otherwise, even with his sharp claws, it would have taken more than a day or two to expand the cave so much.

Yuan Ming moved a large stone from nearby to block the cave entrance. He also gathered a lot of dry branches and grass to make a simple bed inside the cave. A simple dwelling was thus completed.

Lying on the dry grass bed, he relaxed completely and couldn't help but yawn.

The previous cave dwelling was rudimentary, and he had been busy cultivating and hunting beasts, so he hadn't paid attention to his personal comfort. Now, lying on the soft grass bed, the accumulated fatigue surged out, and he felt quite sleepy.

Yuan Ming didn't fight the urge to sleep this time. He collapsed onto the dry grass bed and soon fell into a deep sleep.

He slept extremely well and woke up refreshed at noon the next day. After hastily eating some dried meat, he left the cave and headed into the forest on the other side of the canyon.

Yuan Ming glanced towards the mountain hollow where the Green Fox den was located, then quickly averted his gaze.

He had hunted more than half of the Green Fox pack. Since he had killed the Green Fox leader last month, the remaining Green Foxes had scattered, leaving him without a stable hunting ground.

Yuan Ming shook his head and strode deeper into the forest.

He had been wandering around the edges of this forest for the past few months. This was his first time venturing deep into it.

As he went deeper, he noticed that the surrounding trees had become exceptionally tall. Centuries-old towering trees were everywhere. A thick layer of dead branches and fallen leaves covered the ground, giving a soft feeling underfoot. The line of sight was filled with dense bushes and vines, much more lush than on the other side of the canyon, obstructing his view.

Yuan Ming pondered for a moment, then transformed into the White Ape and leaped onto a tree, beginning to move by jumping.

After about fifteen minutes, everything was calm, and he hadn't encountered any Fierce Beasts.

He wasn't surprised by this. This forest was only the outskirts of the Hundred Thousand Mountains. Although there were Fierce Beasts lurking, their numbers weren't actually that great. Wulu had complained before, saying he spent more time searching for Fierce Beasts than hunting them.

It was only by luck that he had found a large nest of Green Foxes earlier, which allowed him to easily complete his monthly quota. As for the yellow Armadillo, it had vanished without a trace. To reach his goal of one thousand portions of essence blood, he would have to venture deeper.

Of course, Yuan Ming had no intention of rushing or being overly ambitious; safety was still the top priority.

After traveling another li or so, he heard the sound of rushing water ahead. It was a small waterfall cascading down a cliff face into a clear pool, and a cool mist wafted towards him.

Yuan Ming crouched on a tree, peering ahead through the gaps in the leaves.

He saw a large, boar-like Fierce Beast drinking at the edge of the pool. Its fur was a fiery red, and its muscles bulged on its back and legs, clearly indicating it was a powerful Fierce Beast.

The boar-like Fierce Beast also had a sharp, single horn on its forehead, which looked incredibly sharp. Two sword-like, gleaming tusks protruded from its mouth, flashing with a cold, chilling light that sent shivers down one's spine.

Yuan Ming gazed at the "prey" before him, a smile tugging at his lips. His eyes scanned the environment around the pool, looking for any other potential dangers.

Just then, the boar-like Fierce Beast's ears twitched, and it suddenly lifted its head from the pool, looking around as if it had heard something.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming quickly hid behind the tree trunk, remaining perfectly still.

The boar-like Fierce Beast's ears flickered, as if listening to the sounds around it. After a few breaths, it lowered its head and continued drinking.

Yuan Ming breathed a sigh of relief. He cautiously peeked out, observing the creature carefully.

Judging by its size, this guy is much stronger than the Green Foxes and the Armadillo I encountered before. Let's start with you for the thousand portions target. He mused inwardly, quietly moving closer, and soon found himself near the boar-like Fierce Beast.

Just as he approached, the boar-like Fierce Beast stood up, shook off the water, grunted contentedly a couple of times, and prepared to turn away from the pool.

Yuan Ming seized the opportunity, leaping from the tree and landing squarely on the beast's broad back. Before the boar-like Fierce Beast could react, he plunged his sharp claws deep into its neck and slashed fiercely.

"Tear!"

Two deep, bone-revealing wounds appeared on the boar-like Fierce Beast's neck, and blood gushed out.

It let out a shrill scream and charged forward wildly, smashing through two large trees in its path, sending wood chips and leaves flying.

Yuan Ming, unable to steady himself, was flung backward.

"Roar!" The boar-like Fierce Beast's eyes turned blood red, and it spun around, lunging fiercely at Yuan Ming.

The boar lowered its head, its scarlet horn aimed like a giant spear at Yuan Ming's chest. Its massive body generated a powerful gust of wind, causing the trees several yards away to rustle violently.

Yuan Ming had just regained his footing, and it was too late to dodge. He thrust out both hands, grabbing the scarlet horn.

Screech...

His feet scraped against the ground as he slid backward.

After sliding back about two zhang, Yuan Ming dug his feet into the ground half a foot deep, stabilizing himself. No matter how hard the boar-like Fierce Beast struggled, it couldn't budge him at all.

"Lift!" Yuan Ming roared, his arm muscles bulging as he heaved upwards.

The boar-like Fierce Beast's massive body was actually lifted into the air. It spun halfway around before being smashed violently into a nearby tree.

The tree, thick enough for two people to embrace, snapped instantly. The boar-like Fierce Beast's body continued its descent, hitting the ground with a resounding "bang," causing the ground within a radius of several zhang to shake slightly.

Before the beast could recover, a bone-white claw descended from above, piercing its skull and penetrating the hard bone.

The boar-like Fierce Beast let out a desperate scream. Its colossal body twitched a few times before it lay still.

Yuan Ming nodded. This boar-like Fierce Beast was not weak. If he had encountered it three months ago, he would have likely lost more than he won. Now, facing him, it was like a kitten or puppy, completely defenseless.

He had made the right choice in abandoning the Blood Qi Method and cultivating the Nine Yuan Art instead.

Yuan Ming took out the blood collection bag and collected the boar's blood. Just as he was about to leave, a low growl suddenly came from ahead, followed by the ground shaking and a wave of dust and air erupting!