Greatly Improved Strength, Hidden Treasure in the Village

At this very moment, blood was flowing on Wuyun Peak, and the mountain bandits surrounding the main stronghold were already terrified.

They thought a god of wealth had arrived, but instead, a god of slaughter had!

The corpses in the courtyard were piled up, forming several small mountains. Even so, the god of slaughter inside seemed unsatisfied!

"No, don't, don't!"

"I don't want to die, I don't want to die!"

Suddenly, someone among the bandits shouted and turned to flee down the mountain.

Seeing this, the surrounding bandits' faces changed, and they hurriedly avoided him.

As expected, in the next moment, a steel saber whistled through the air, piercing directly through the man's back, and even through the person behind him.

Just as they feared, it happened again!

A group of mountain bandits' legs went weak, and they directly knelt on the ground.

After so many deaths, they had wanted to run for a long time, but the god of slaughter before them wouldn't allow it!

If they dared to leave, the consequence would be to be dealt with by this god of slaughter first, and those around them would die along with them!

Under such circumstances, they didn't even dare to run, only hoping that this lord would vent his anger and leave.

But now, seeing that nearly five hundred people had been killed in the courtyard, which was exactly half the people on the mountain, these people finally realized that this god of slaughter truly intended to kill them all!

"Run! Everyone run! He doesn't intend to let us go!" someone else shouted, and this time, more voices joined in.

"Brothers, run quickly! Let's all run together, how many can he kill?"

"Run, I don't want to die, run!"

This time, it wasn't individuals running one by one. Almost all the bandits still alive turned at once and rushed towards the direction of the mountain.

However, the mountain where these bandits made their camp was notoriously difficult to traverse, precisely to prevent external enemies from invading.

Everyone ran down the mountain like madmen, but instead, they crowded and pushed each other, causing many to fall into the forest, their fates unknown.

Li Yan didn't pay much attention to this. The possibility of actually killing everyone present was slim.

Within a day, it was inevitable that some scattered individuals would escape, and the news here would surely spread, attracting other martial artists soon.

At that time, his disguise would be blown.

Moreover, although he could replenish his stamina and True Qi by constantly picking up attribute points, the depletion of his spirit could not be compensated.

Kill another five hundred people?

He couldn't do it.

This was perfect. These guys were collapsing on their own, and many would die from crowding on the way down the mountain. Afterward, they would be unable to pose a significant threat.

With everyone gone, it was time for the most enjoyable harvest.

He opened his system panel, which he hadn't done in a while.

Name: Li Yan

Realm: First Level of Qi Condensation

Strength: 268

Speed: 221

Physique: 255

Spirit: 52

True Qi: 47

Martial Arts: Hundred Beasts Marrow Quenching Scripture Fifth Level (123/1600); Hundred Battles Saber Return to Truth; Falling Star Spear Fragment (Not yet learned - Completion/1000); Tearing Wind Claws Minor Accomplishment (137/400); Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art First Level (257/2000); Wind Chasing Wave Treading Minor Accomplishment (89/400)

Secret Skills: Hundred Blades · Bloodshed Initial Glimpse (103/500)

Remaining Experience Points: 13229

This battle on the mountain, slaughtering nearly 500 bandits, yielded considerable gains.

His physical attributes had almost doubled, and this increase in basic attributes was comparable to cultivating Body Tempering techniques.

However, the most important thing was the dazzling amount of experience points.

After confirming that the mountain was deserted, Li Yan returned to the main stronghold and sat in Long Tonghai's grand seat, closing his eyes to meditate and communicate with the system.

"System, upgrade Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art!"

"1743 experience points were spent, and the level of Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art has been increased."

"Martial Arts: Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art Second Level (0/3000)"

As soon as the prompt sound fell, a powerful surge of True Qi rose from his dantian. The torrent of True Qi circulated through his meridians before dispersing and flowing into several major acupoints.

Feeling the surging internal energy within his body, Li Yan did not show joy but instead frowned slightly.

With the advancement of Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art to the second level, Li Yan's realm naturally broke through to the second level of the Qi Condensation Realm.

However, although the surging True Qi in his body was constantly churning, Li Yan felt that his meridians were still somewhat empty, like eating a delicious meal but only feeling seven-tenths full.

A moment's thought was all it took for Li Yan to realize the reason: Attribute Points.

The increase in Attribute Points had rapidly boosted his Physique, naturally strengthening the meridians within his body.

With nearly every attribute doubling, his meridians must have undergone an unimaginable expansion.

Though the massive surge of True Qi from breaking through his Realm was astonishing, it couldn't possibly fill the vast chasm that had been forcefully widened.

"System, upgrade the Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art!"

"Expending 3000 Experience Points, the Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art's level has been increased."

"Martial Art: Flower Cultivation and Leaf Nurturing Art, Third Level (0/4000)"

Boom!

The next moment, a surge of True Qi, nearly double the previous amount, erupted. The rolling aura swept out like a mountain torrent. The already chaotic hall shattered with a muffled thud under the impact of this surging energy.

This aura churned for a long time before slowly subsiding as the full moon hung high in the sky.

"Hoo... consecutive breakthroughs, I almost couldn't handle it..."

Muttering to himself, Li Yan looked with some helplessness at his tattered clothes, which were now little more than rags.

He knew this technique offered a significant boost upon breaking through, but he hadn't expected this time's improvement to be so immense!

The potent True Qi completely filled his body's meridians, directly causing them to suddenly accommodate such a volume of True Qi, which in turn led to such a massive impact.

It was at this moment that Li Yan recalled a simple sentence Shangguan Liuyun had once mentioned.

"When breaking through a realm, you must first exhaust all your power, clearing the True Qi from all major acupoints within your body, leaving yourself in a state of complete emptiness."

However, because breaking through this technique required vast resources, Shangguan Liuyun didn't expect Li Yan to break through so quickly. Thus, he had only mentioned it in passing, which nearly cost Li Yan his life.

Fortunately, his Physique, far exceeding that of a normal Second Level of Qi Condensation cultivator, saved his life. However, he wouldn't be able to attempt another breakthrough for a while.

Unable to break through further, he had to deal with the mess before him.

The hundreds of corpses in the village would surely cause trouble if left unattended. Moreover, the scattered gold and silver couldn't just be left here; they could still be used after their toxins were removed.

Before long, after tidying up all the jewelry, Li Yan rummaged through cabinets and drawers, searching for flammable items like alcohol within the village.

While searching one of the rooms, he unexpectedly discovered that the floor tile beneath a square table was loose.

Lifting the tile revealed two small chests beneath.

He took out the chests and opened them. The first thing he saw were gleaming gold ingots. Upon closer inspection, he noticed a stamp on the gold.

[Great Wu]

"Well now, these are gold ingots from the Great Wu Dynasty's imperial treasury!"

He surmised that this must have been Long Tonghai's room, and these gold ingots were likely treasures bestowed by Wu Zongren, which Long Tonghai had secretly hoarded.

The other chest contained two booklets.

The first was inscribed with the large characters [Thunderous Strike], a fierce saber technique.

Flipping through it briefly, Li Yan's eyes lit up slightly.

Unlike saber techniques from military origins like the Hundred Battles Saber Technique, [Thunderous Strike] was perfectly suited for combat in the Jianghu.

The saber technique consisted of nine stances: Strike Thunder Sweep, Break Firmament Chop, Thunder Vortex Part, Lightning Flash Shave, Startling Thunder Sweep, Cloud Thunder Guard, Ten Thousand Jin Slash, Annihilate Strike, and Thunder Silence · Sky Cry.

The first eight stances integrated the grand momentum of heavenly thunder, pushing the limits of the eight fundamental saber techniques to their fullest. The final stance was a mutually destructive technique, harming both attacker and defender.

Li Yan's eyesight wasn't the best, but he imagined this saber technique would hold a significant place in the Jianghu. It was just that Long Tonghai, poisoned and weakened, hadn't been able to get a glimpse of it earlier.

Looking at the other booklet, it was inscribed with the large characters... [Ledger].