Returning to simplicity?

"Bang bang bang!"

Yan Nu sprinted up the mountain, his movements fluid and dynamic.

As he landed from one of his leaps, a commotion suddenly reached his ears.

He glanced over, seeing only a patch of bushes.

It was too dark to tell what was hiding there.

So Yan Nu bent down, picked up a suitable-sized river stone, and hurled it towards the bushes.

He infused True Qi into the throw, and the stone shattered in mid-air, scattering like falling blossoms.

"Awooo!" A dark grey wolf burst out. Its legs were already smashed, and its bloodshot eyes dared not approach Yan Nu. It could only lift its head and howl desperately.

"Gulp..." Yan Nu's mouth watered. He'd butchered a wolf with Grandpa before, one of his few times eating meat.

Seeing the wolf howl now, Yan Nu whooshed forward, moving incredibly fast... and then he headbutted the wolf to death...

"This guy called the pack... I should hurry and find my sister."

Yan Nu cast a regretful glance at the wolf's corpse, ignored it, and quickened his pace.

The mountain path was rugged, but he was agile, his bare feet striding across the strange rocks. He didn't dare step on trees; the branches couldn't support his strength.

"Awooo awooo..."

Wolves were excellent trackers, and wolf howls echoed through the forest.

Yan Nu sprinted, scanning his surroundings. He occasionally caught glimpses of the wolves darting through the dense woods. He casually broke off a long, thick pine branch, taking it as a makeshift weapon.

But using a branch as a weapon meant he couldn't use too much True Qi, or it would shatter instantly.

So he only needed to infuse a tiny bit of True Qi. Whenever a wolf lunged, he'd poke or chop, enough to break the wolf's fragile waist.

However, this pack of wolves had bloodshot eyes and fierce gazes. They were fearless of death; for every one that fell, more would pounce.

They even moved in a coordinated, cross-covering manner, like a battle formation.

There were also many wild dogs, cooperating with the wolves to attack, as if they were family.

For an ordinary person, even a Martial Artist with profound skill, they would eventually be exhausted by this pack of wolves and dogs.

But Yan Nu feared depletion the least. He didn't know any fancy moves, just relying on brute force with True Qi. He had an endless supply anyway!

He didn't know how many wolves and dogs he'd killed along the way before reaching the mountainside.

Suddenly, he heard sounds of fighting ahead – wolf howls, dog barks, and a man's hysterical shouts.

"Sounds like a man's voice. Is someone being surrounded by wolves?" Yan Nu didn't hesitate and immediately rushed forward.

Soon, he saw a cave dwelling with a stone tablet in front of it, inscribed with three characters that Yan Nu couldn't recognize.

Beside it was a stream flowing down from higher stone peaks.

And in front of the cave entrance, a young man holding a spear was being surrounded.

A two-foot-tall monkey was riding on his shoulder. This little monkey also possessed True Qi and was using small iron pieces as projectiles, shooting them at the wolves.

The young man leaned against the stone wall, facing the onslaught of wolves and wild dogs, his spear dancing in a impenetrable defense.

However, it was clear that both the young man and the little monkey were panting, at their wit's end.

The wild dogs had them completely surrounded, feigning attacks, clearly waiting for them to completely run out of strength.

Yan Nu jumped into the fray without a word, sweeping the wooden staff in a wide arc. "Follow me!" he yelled.

The young man was overjoyed and quickly followed, but then he became somewhat speechless. Yan Nu's spear and staff techniques were utterly chaotic.

Extremely crude, a complete waste of True Qi.

How many wolves and dogs were there on Flag Mountain? How could he afford to waste it like this? He himself was about to be worn down and unable to escape.

Just as the young man was about to ask, his expression suddenly changed. "Careful! That Spirit Beast is here again!"

"Woof!" A huge yellow dog leaped through the branches, covering several yards, and pounced from afar.

This big dog was different from the other dogs and wolves. Its eyes were clear and exceptionally intelligent.

It moved with incredible speed, instantly appearing beside Yan Nu. It carried a fearsome force; the air pressure alone shattered Yan Nu's wooden staff.

A ferocious aura washed over him. Its gaping maw, with its interlocking teeth, gnashed down with a chilling glint.

"Bang!" Yan Nu threw an uppercut.

This punch contained twenty years of cultivation!

With a whistling sound, it slammed hard into the big yellow dog's jaw. The air distorted, and visible ripples expanded outwards from the point of impact!

The big yellow dog's mouth was slammed shut with immense force, spraying blood foam.

Its body traced a bloody arc through the air, crashing heavily into the wolf pack.

However, it quickly got up, shaking its head, sticking out its tongue, drooling, and letting out a strange, cold laugh. Its dog eyes glared fiercely at Yan Nu.

"Crack..." The big yellow dog moved its shattered jaw, dripping blood, and slowly retreated.

Yan Nu's expression turned solemn. "Is this a monster from the mountains?"

"No, it's a half-demon Spirit Beast, offspring of the Flag Mountain Dog Demon!" The young man's face turned anxious as he saw Yan Nu unleash his True Qi in a single burst.

"Do you still have any True Qi? Quickly! Use my spear!"

He threw the spear in his hand, and Yan Nu caught it, swinging it with all his might!

"..." The young man, who had inherited exquisite spear techniques, felt physically ill watching Yan Nu use it like this.

However, every move Yan Nu made unleashed twenty years of cultivation, making it incredibly powerful.

"Clang!"

The spear struck down, sending rocks flying! The air rippled!

Although the big yellow dog dodged, it was still shaken.

The dog had been laughing earlier, thinking Yan Nu had exhausted all his True Qi in one go. Who would have thought Yan Nu's every move could be so potent?

Normally, twenty years of cultivation would be divided into over a hundred moves. But Yan Nu could unleash so much power with each strike, and he could still do it a hundred more times!

"What terrifying power!" The young man was startled.

"A person can't have this much True Qi, so is it the exquisite techniques that I can't understand?"

The young man considered himself exceptionally talented. At only twenty-four, he had reached Two Essences Body Tempering and was ranked among the best. Otherwise, why would he dare come to Flag Mountain?

But after witnessing Yan Nu's 'spear techniques,' he realized there were always greater talents out there.

The power of each strike was equivalent to a normal person unleashing twenty years of cultivation. If it were all fueled by True Qi, was that even possible?

Impossible. Even with sixty years of cultivation, one couldn't perform two such moves.

Therefore, there must be an extremely refined technique for generating force behind this. Each move, using only a small amount of True Qi, could amplify its power tenfold.

Otherwise, there was no explanation.

True ultimate skills weren't about superficial changes but the internal generation of force.

This was why an ordinary downward slash from a top master could possess immense power.

Understanding this, he looked at Yan Nu again. His seemingly wild attacks were actually the epitome of unadorned skill! Each move was natural and effortless, returning to simplicity.

"Hmm? This is..."

Next, the young man discovered another exquisite aspect: the quality of Yan Nu's True Qi was extraordinary.

The faster True Qi could be channeled into a weapon and converted into force, the higher its quality.

Another indicator was the frequency of vibration when the weapon bore the True Qi. Qualities at the Ultimate Skill level sounded like a thousand birds chirping in unison.

The Divine Skill level, however, was a great sound that was silent!

He saw that the spear in Yan Nu's hand vibrated almost imperceptibly. Despite the entanglement of force, there was no sound of the spear. This was typical of Divine Skill True Qi.

"The force splits into two, one rotating left, one right, a true orthodox technique... Wait, no! What's in the middle..."

"Ah? Three-phase power!"

The young man's expression shifted repeatedly, his emotions stirred again and again.

He realized that Yan Nu's True Qi possessed not just Yin and Yang, but also a neutral, straight-moving force that flowed through it all.

These three forces, like twin snakes coiling around a meteor, formed a structure he had never heard of.

This wasn't due to the young man's ignorance; Yan Nu's situation was simply too unique.

Yan Nu had learned the Great Emperor White Jade Scripture, but he wasn't using it normally at this moment...

The Hammer True Qi stubbornly coexisted within him. As long as it wasn't completely converted into the Qi vortex, every time he circulated his energy, the Yin-Yang Qi Vortex would entangle with the Hammer True Qi and unleash together, three energies intertwined, resulting in immense power.

The True Qi in the world was only divided into Yin-cold, neutral, and Yang-hot. Neutral True Qi could not be cultivated with other types, making it exceedingly rare for someone to possess three-phase power simultaneously.

Yet, Yan Nu had a unique True Qi and had only ever practiced the Great Emperor Scripture, so there were no conflicts with his cultivation methods.

Unintentionally, he had elevated the Body Tempering chapter of the Great Emperor Scripture to an entirely new realm.

"Bang bang bang!" Yan Nu used the spear like a hammer, smashing and swinging wildly, creating gusts of wind and kicking up dust and stones, scattering the surrounding wolves!

Each strike's force, transformed from True Qi, was immense, comparable to the sword energy of a Three Essences Body Tempering Martial Artist.

Yan Nu himself had not undergone Body Tempering. He would need to reach Three Essences to project his True Qi externally. Therefore, all the force Yan Nu unleashed was essentially accelerated air, akin to palm wind.

Using palm wind to achieve the effect of breaking-body sword energy was like using the methods of a third-rate martial artist to achieve the results of a top-tier one.

After this wild display, the big yellow dog dared not approach, its face showing fear.

Many wolves that couldn't dodge in time were directly reduced to pulp.

"Great spear! Long and hard, I like it!" Yan Nu exclaimed with delight, praising it repeatedly.

He found this spear far more useful than his chain. Not only did True Qi transmit quickly, but there was almost no waste.

Seeing his peculiar techniques driving the half-demon Spirit Beast back, the young man couldn't help but cheer, "Excellent!"

Overcome with emotion, tears welled in his eyes: "This is a Black Iron Spear refined by my father. It is exceptionally tough and destined to slay demons with this spear!"

"Woof woof!"

The big yellow dog understood human speech. It cast a cold glance at the young man, then saw how formidable Yan Nu was. Unwilling to confront him directly, it barked fiercely a few times and retreated deep into the dark cave.

The other vicious wolves and wild dogs instantly went mad, charging at Yan Nu fearlessly to deplete his True Qi.

"It's happening again! This vicious dog is cunning. It wants to exhaust your True Qi before killing us!" the young man said anxiously.

He then asked Yan Nu, "I'm running out of steam. Brother, how much True Qi do you have left?"

Yan Nu didn't know how to explain, so he said, "Just a little bit left."

"What! Then let's go quickly!" The young man's face changed drastically. Just a little bit left, how could that work?

If it were exhausted, it would be their death. It was better to break out while they still had some strength!

"Okay." Yan Nu didn't linger, and led the young man towards the higher stone peaks.

"Huh? Where are you running?" Halfway up, the young man realized Yan Nu wasn't going down the mountain, but up, towards a higher range of peaks.

But it was too late to turn back now; vicious wolves and wild dogs were everywhere behind them.

Yan Nu wanted to protect the young man, so he didn't run at full speed, always staying by his side.

But if they ran like this, how could they outrun the wolf pack?

The young man was almost caught and bitten, but luckily, the little monkey on his shoulder, still with a bit of strength left, used its hidden weapons to kill the two fastest wolves.

"This mountain is specifically raising a large pack of vicious wolves and wild dogs to wear us down. Many wandering warriors who come to Flag Mountain to eliminate monsters never even get to see a monster."

The young man panted. Without True Qi, he couldn't shake off the wolf pack at all.

Seeing that the little monkey was also running out of True Qi, his expression turned sorrowful. He sighed, "Brother, only one of us can make it. Please take my monkey with you. His name is Wanzi!"

With that, he let the little monkey jump onto Yan Nu, but the monkey clung tightly to his hair, chattering and crying, tears in its eyes.

"Brother, I'll give you this Profound Iron Spear."

The young man grabbed the monkey and threw it to Yan Nu, then drew a dagger as his weapon, his eyes filled with extreme struggle.

"I have an irreconcilable hatred with the Flag Mountain Dog Demon. These lackeys, I'll kill a few more even if I die!"

"Bang!"

Just as he hesitated whether to stop and fight to the death, a spear flew past him, instantly killing a wolf. The wolf's corpse even exploded, blood splattering everywhere.

Yan Nu followed closely, grabbed the spear, and began his "Whirlwind Spear Technique" again!

The young man watched in stunned silence as sand and stones flew, and blood and gore splattered everywhere.

"You... how much True Qi do you have left?"

Yan Nu's moves were grand and powerful, not at all like someone whose True Qi was about to run out.

"Uh, just a little bit left," Yan Nu replied honestly.

"..." The young man was speechless and no longer believed his "little bit."

Seeing Yan Nu kill dozens of wild dogs with his spear, although the power had diminished compared to when he fought the half-demon, it was still extraordinary.

He couldn't help but press, "How much is left, exactly? Ten percent? Or twenty?"

Yan Nu suddenly realized, "Oh, less than five percent."

"What!" The young man's face turned green with fright.

He said urgently, "Brother! Don't fight! Don't fight!"

"Let's go, let's go!"

Yan Nu, however, wasn't anxious. Instead, he said, "These wild dogs are chasing us like crazy. Why don't I stay behind, and you take the opportunity to escape down the mountain? I need to go up the mountain to find my sister. We're not going the same way."

Saying that, he threw the little monkey to the young man. The monkey immediately grabbed the young man's hair and refused to let go.

The young man said solemnly, "Brother, you saved my life. How can I abandon you!"

He immediately brandished his dagger and joined the battle.

Both he and the monkey were at the end of their rope. After fighting for a long time, they only managed to deal with a few wild dogs.

Looking at Yan Nu again, he had already killed seventy or eighty, carrying his spear, he returned covered in blood.

The young man asked blankly, "Brother, have you run out of True Qi...?"

"Almost." Yan Nu's True Qi was indeed running low, with about 'twenty years' left.

The remaining wild dogs changed their strategy, only launching feigned attacks and skirmishes, no longer rushing forward in a swarm to die.

"These wild dogs and wolves are well-trained. That big yellow dog earlier was actually directing them from the shadows! If too many die in a short period, they won't fight head-on. In short, they'll do whatever it takes to wear us down," the young man explained breathlessly.

Yan Nu nodded and asked, "Do you have any steamed buns to eat...?"

Near the mountain peak, it was all rocks, and he couldn't find any grass by looking down.

"Yes!" The young man quickly took out several. Steamed buns were the most common food, easy to make and store.

The two ran higher while feasting.

As expected, after chasing for a while, the vicious wolves and wild dogs suddenly became fearless again, roaring and surrounding them.

Yan Nu had no choice but to turn back and enter his killing spree again.

This time, the young man was numb. He said his True Qi was almost depleted, so what kind of divine skill was this?

The numerous vicious wolves and wild dogs were, after all, just ordinary beasts. The monsters raised them to be fearless of death, using them as expendables.

As long as they couldn't wear Yan Nu down, they would be the ones to perish.

Finally, Yan Nu had killed all but two or three wolves and dogs, wiping out over four hundred in total.

A dog's bark echoed from the distance. The remaining ones stopped their harassment and fled en masse.

p.s: Sorry.