Grinding Experience at Mass Grave Hill

"Damn, another unknown enemy appeared!"

But he didn't pay much attention. The more debts you have, the less you worry about them!

After an internal scan, he found no foreign objects!

As for internal scanning, he'd had this ability since arriving in this world.

"Still not strong enough!"

"Am I possessed by Conan? Why have I been encountering evil spirits so often these past two days!"

Zhang You sat dejectedly on the ground, lamenting.

He then sighed again, "Looks like I need to prepare more blood-replenishing items!"

After resting for a bit and cleaning up the traces from earlier, he went to take down the tea house's "Closed" sign and opened for business.

Soon, the tea house became crowded.

He was busy for half the day before finally snatching a moment to rest.

Woodworker Wu also came by, greeted him, and then went to the backyard.

The most talked-about topics today were still the headless case and the mummified corpse case.

With nothing else to do and not hearing anything that interested him, Zhang You began to continue conceptualizing and shaping the White Tiger, filling in the details.

"Done!"

Stealing a moment of leisure amidst his work, he finally completed the construction of the White Tiger.

A clear image of the White Tiger now existed in his mind. With a single thought, it would manifest, which was extremely convenient.

He was very happy and couldn't wait to start visualizing it immediately!

But obviously, now wasn't the right time.

He decided to continue refining the White Tiger's details. During this time, Woodworker Wu came, settled his payment, and left.

In the evening, Shopkeeper Li still hadn't returned.

He once again threw away the food prepared by the Delicious Restaurant.

Zhang You thought for a moment and decided to head to Mass Grave Hill outside the city!

He planned to go there to gain experience!

Xiaolin City closes its gates at night, prohibiting entry and exit.

But if one wanted to leave, there were definitely some unconventional ways to do so!

Zhang You happened to know one of these secret passages.

A few miles east of the city lay a mass grave.

It was the place he had passed by while escaping earlier.

He heard that many refugees and people who had died under unclear circumstances were buried there.

Mass Grave Hill.

The moon was high and the wind was dark. The surroundings were deathly silent, with only the occasional sound of insects and birds.

At this moment, a young man with dark circles under his eyes stood at the edge, gazing into Mass Grave Hill.

It was Zhang You!

He had come to gain experience.

Before coming here, he had tried to escape again, but ultimately returned to the vicinity of Mass Grave Hill!

He could feel that there was likely some kind of formation.

And it was specifically targeting him!

So he had given up on the idea of escaping!

At this moment, he was staring intently at the graves and the grayish-white spiritual entities floating around them, feeling a sense of dread.

These were products of resentment, yin energy, and ghost fire, shaped exactly like lanterns.

They were called Ghostfire Lantern Monsters!

It was said that after midnight in Mass Grave Hill, spirits would appear.

However, between 8 PM and midnight, these lantern monsters would appear.

These lantern monsters had no self-awareness; they merely roamed and wandered around Mass Grave Hill.

They posed almost no life-threatening danger to ordinary living beings; at most, yin energy would enter the body, causing illness for a few days.

Sometimes, under rare circumstances, some mutated lantern monsters might be born, and they would attack passing living beings.

Therefore, people from the Demon Suppression Division would inspect the area periodically and directly eliminate any mutated lantern monsters they encountered.

In the past, the Demon Suppression Division had also organized people to clear out these lantern monsters, but after they were eliminated on a given day, they would continue to reappear the next night.

Since they weren't very harmful, over time, people largely stopped paying attention to them!

Zhang You glanced around, found no one, and then went straight into Mass Grave Hill!

His palm glowed with faint red blood energy as he unleashed a palm strike at the lantern monster before him!

"Screech!"

The lantern monster vanished, and a wisp of blue-white energy was absorbed into his body!

"Holy crap, I'm rich!"

If you can't find the book by its title, try searching for the author; perhaps they just changed their name!

Zhang You's face lit up with surprise. He rushed forward, his hand a blur of motion!

From afar, it looked like someone was dancing on graves.

If anyone passed by, they'd surely think they'd encountered a ghost!

Swish, swish, swish!

He swept through the lantern monsters like cutting through melons and vegetables.

Wisp after wisp of blue-white energy surged into his body.

He could clearly feel the changes in his body, a growing heat spreading throughout him!

He didn't know how many lantern monsters he'd slain, but at a certain point, the sensation of a major body tempering arrived!

Soon, he stood rooted to the spot, his skin flushed crimson, a bone-piercing pain radiating from within him.

"Crack, crack, crack!"

He could even hear the sound of bones grinding!

"Damn it!"

The pain was more intense than last time, and blood began to stream from his seven orifices!

His entire body was oozing blood.

His muscles convulsed, and he collapsed onto the ground, curled up like a shrimp!

"I have to hold on! I want to live, damn it!"

The pain was so great he was rolling his eyes, his consciousness starting to drift.

This time, there wasn't much dirt on his skin.

"Pfft!"

Suddenly, someone let out a long, loud fart.

The stench was overwhelming, causing nearby moss to lose its green color. Many hibernating animals underground even foamed at the mouth and fell into an eternal sleep!

It was a good thing there was a slight breeze, otherwise Zhang You would have nearly died from his own flatulence!

"Cough, cough, cough!"

After an unknown amount of time, Zhang You recovered and, leaning on an unmarked tombstone, managed to stand up, leaving a dark palm print on it.

"Hoo!"

He let out a long breath and stretched his limbs. Although a faint ache remained, he felt an unprecedented lightness.

Suddenly, he sensed something attacking him from behind!

Zhang You frowned, and a more potent wave of blood energy surged from his body. He reached out with a large hand and caught a lantern monster.

It was a mutated lantern monster!

Its entire body was black, its two eyes were blood-red, and it had rows of serrated teeth, tearing at him maniacally. It even had two feet and two hands.

Or rather, they couldn't be called hands and feet, only tentacles, but they weren't long.

Of course, struggling was futile.

"It's not a spiritual entity!"

This thing had a tangible feel, slimy, like some kind of blood-and-flesh monster.

"Screech..."

Zhang You crushed it in his hand. A sharp sound echoed, and it quickly went still, turning into a pool of liquid.

A wisp of blue-white energy flowed into his body.

"Ugh! Ew!"

He disgustedly wiped his hands on a nearby tombstone, leaving several noticeable smudges!

"Oh, oh, sorry! Sorry! Don't blame me! It's all this disgusting little thing's fault!"

Zhang You seemed to remember something and quickly bowed to the tombstone.

"If you're a brother, let me take a stab at you!"

Seeing that the sky was still young, he plunged back into "exorcising demons and upholding righteousness."

During this time, he underwent another major body tempering, which was, of course, not a pleasant experience.

It took half his life and he almost didn't make it, but he endured it in the end!

He could already feel his strength increasing, especially his blood energy, which was even more vigorous!

"Perhaps this is the 'First Realm' mentioned in the Grand Martial Arts Compendium!"

The Grand Martial Arts Compendium briefly touched upon martial arts realms, from the First Realm to the Fourth Realm.

His current condition should be the First Realm!

Since he had undergone four Great Body Temperings, he called his current realm the 'First Realm, Fourth Stage'!

Looking at the empty surroundings, Zhang You nodded with satisfaction, "I'll continue tomorrow night!"

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, something darted past him.

"Rumble!"

Then another sound reached him, and Zhang You grew alert, wanting to climb a tree to assess the situation.

But it was clearly too late. A massive dark shadow immediately entered his vision, charging straight at him.