"Hah!"
From Lingxiao Sect's rear mountain came wave after wave of deep shouts. A figure swung both palms, repeatedly blasting a massive boulder.
Bang!
As his palms moved, palm prints howled forth one after another, smashing heavily against the rock and leaving deep imprints across its surface.
Lu Changsheng trained in martial skills day and night, neglecting food and sleep. Under such grueling practice, he quickly made tremendous progress.
After a full half month, he had finally mastered all three martial skills!
"Raging Waves Palm!"
Lu Changsheng shouted sharply. Spiritual energy frantically gathered in his palm, condensing into a powerful hidden force. When that force had condensed to its limit, he struck forward with his palm!
Boom!
As the palm strike flew forth, its powerful force surged like raging waves, layering the air upon itself and forming ring after ring of ripples as it slammed fiercely toward a huge boulder ahead.
With a bang, the hard boulder was instantly blasted into powder!
"I finally succeeded..."
Seeing the shattered rock, Lu Changsheng could not help raising the corner of his mouth before slowly withdrawing his palm. Yet his hands were now covered in thick blood blisters, clearly showing how much he had paid during this time.
Still, his hard training had ultimately been rewarded. He had finally gained an initial grasp of all three martial skills!
"How strange. Among these three martial skills, Wind Thunder Fist has the highest grade, so why does its power seem somewhat lacking?"
Lu Changsheng frowned.
His expression was filled with confusion. Wind Thunder Fist was a fifth-grade Yellow Rank martial skill, so it should have been the strongest. Yet after cultivating all three martial skills, Lu Changsheng was surprised to discover that Wind Thunder Fist seemed somewhat lacking in power.
Its power was even inferior to the third-grade Yellow Rank Raging Waves Palm. He racked his brains but could not understand why. Why did he always feel that Wind Thunder Fist seemed to be missing something?
Of course, Lu Changsheng had only initially mastered the three martial skills. He was still far from wielding them with consummate ease.
For example, Raging Waves Palm could continuously stack its palm force, making its power like unceasing waves. As one wave piled atop another, its power multiplied.
Yet for now, Lu Changsheng was unable to stack his palm force and form such an endless, powerful offensive.
"Though I've only initially mastered these three martial skills, my combat strength has increased by far more than ten percent. Next, I should test them in actual combat and see just how powerful they are."
Lu Changsheng muttered to himself.
Actual combat was the true standard for judging a person's strength, so Lu Changsheng intended to further test his results through battle.
And finding real combat was naturally simple enough. Lingxiao Sect's rear mountain contained a dense forest where demonic beasts ran rampant, so he could fight those demonic beasts in earnest.
Only through life-and-death struggle could one improve one's practical combat experience.
With that thought, Lu Changsheng sprang into the dense forest like an ape, vanishing among the trees as he began searching everywhere for demonic beasts to use as opponents.
The thick forest exuded a primitive aura. Naturally, there was no shortage of demonic beasts in such a forest.
"Something's moving!"
Very quickly, Lu Changsheng spotted his first target, his sharp gaze fixed on the depths of the forest ahead.
Whoosh!
Lu Changsheng leaped from the tree, his body flashing through the woods like an afterimage.
Roar!
Before long, a low roar sounded from ahead.
Lu Changsheng landed atop a treetop and looked toward the distance, where he immediately saw a fierce beast.
"Spirit Rock Leopard."
A grayish-brown leopard lay crouched upon a rock. Its body was sleek yet sturdy, covered in mottled patterns, while its pair of scarlet eyes shone with savage ferocity.
However, Lu Changsheng was somewhat disappointed when he saw this Spirit Rock Leopard.
Because this Spirit Rock Leopard was only at the second level of Core Condensation Realm.
Roar!
Swish—
The Spirit Rock Leopard roared and shot forward like an arrow. It bared its vicious fangs, extended its incomparably sharp claws, and pounced straight at Lu Changsheng.
"Wind Thunder Fist!"
Lu Changsheng did not dodge. Instead, he directly unleashed his trump card.
Crackle!
Faint lightning actually flickered over his fist.
Bang!
His lightning-covered fist slammed directly into the Spirit Rock Leopard's head. The force within that punch pierced straight through its skull, blood spraying out like a fountain.
"Not worth a blow!"
Lu Changsheng shook his head.
With a single move, he had instantly killed this Spirit Rock Leopard at the second level of Core Condensation Realm.
After pondering briefly, Lu Changsheng walked to the Spirit Rock Leopard's corpse and reached into its body, pulling out a grayish-brown demonic core.
This demonic core was a treasure. It could assist cultivation, aid in pill refinement, and fetch quite a handsome price as well.
Lu Changsheng grinned and tucked the demonic core away.
"This Spirit Rock Leopard was too weak. Hopefully, I'll encounter a slightly stronger demonic beast later. It would make the perfect whetstone for me."
Lu Changsheng said expectantly.
With that, he continued deeper into the dense forest.
Along the way, he hunted several more demonic beasts. Unfortunately, they were all far too ordinary and were nearly all killed by Lu Changsheng in a single move.
Before he knew it, Lu Changsheng had entered the deepest part of the forest.
His expression turned wary. Within this primitive forest, he sensed several fierce auras. Clearly, they belonged to powerful demonic beasts.
"Help!"
Yet at that moment, a cry for help suddenly came from nearby.
Hearing that cry, Lu Changsheng swiftly darted toward it.
Before long, he entered a sealed valley.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The moment he entered the valley, thunderous explosions rang out. Lu Changsheng focused his gaze and saw a massive beast resembling an ironclad monster fiercely attacking a young woman in white.
"Azure Armored Demonic Scorpion!"
Lu Changsheng's heart jolted.
This Azure Armored Demonic Scorpion was enormous. Its entire body was covered in azure-green armor that looked utterly indestructible. Its two massive pincers constantly swung toward the woman in white, while the venomous hook on its tail launched sneak attacks from time to time.
This Azure Armored Demonic Scorpion was at least at the fourth level of Core Condensation Realm!
The young woman in white was clearly far weaker than the Azure Armored Demonic Scorpion, so beneath its attacks, she appeared to be in grave danger.
"Miss Cheng Xue..."
Lu Changsheng recognized the identity of the young woman in white at a glance.
Cheng Xue was known among the Outer Disciples as the number one beauty of the outer sect, the object of countless disciples' secret affections. Lu Changsheng had only seen Cheng Xue once from afar, yet her image had been deeply engraved in his mind.
However, back then, he had merely been a Miscellaneous Servant Disciple. How could he have dared to entertain any fantasies about Cheng Xue? Yet now, in this rear mountain forest, he had unexpectedly encountered her—and she was clearly facing mortal danger...
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