Improving Without Training

The savage, violent Earthworm Beasts outside Chaoyun Manor, along with the Lilac Female Ghost that had appeared in broad daylight a few days ago, gave Song Ankang an ever-growing sense of crisis.

Previously, he had only inherited the original owner's memories and had not truly felt it. Only after experiencing things firsthand did he realize just how unfriendly this world was toward humanity.

And this was still within the safest region of the human race, merely a few dozen li from the capital. Compared to other places, it was already exceptionally safe.

Yet even so, Song Ankang had personally witnessed and experienced so many dangers in just a few days. If it had been an ordinary person, how difficult would survival have been?

All of this drove Song Ankang onward, pushing him to improve and advance faster, because if he slowed down even a little, he might face a calamity that would wipe him out completely.

Having died once, Song Ankang had no desire to go through it a second time. He cherished his life greatly now; nothing was more important than staying alive.

So even though practicing the Seven Injuries Demonic Scripture was agonizing, Song Ankang gradually adapted to it, throwing as many extra punches as possible and absorbing more side effects.

"Your use of the Seven Injuries Demonic Scripture has caused you to suffer its side effects. The tendons throughout your body have been severely damaged... The Heavenly Book of Fate Defiance is taking effect, absorbing external energy and preparing to transform the side effects. Please wait!"

The side effects brought by four consecutive Tendon Injury Fists naturally far exceeded those of three. After he had been unconscious for a while, the Heavenly Book of Fate Defiance began transforming the Tendon Injury Fist's side effects.

It first restored his damaged tendons, then began enhancing every tendon throughout Song Ankang's body, pushing tendons that had already reached a certain limit to break through that limit.

Boom...

After only a brief stalemate, the surging Seven Injuries Qi and Blood shattered the bottleneck's restraints and began tempering the bones within Song Ankang's body.

The stronger one's bones, the greater one's resistance to blows, the more formidable one's piercing force, and the fiercer one's attacks.

Thus, tempering the bones could not only improve defense, but also greatly increase attack power.

Strands of Seven Injuries Qi and Blood continuously seeped into his bones, tempering every bone while refining away the impurities within them, causing Song Ankang's strength to rise at a breathtaking pace.

When he awoke once more, Song Ankang's strength had firmly reached the Bone Tempering Realm—the final minor realm of Outer Forging Fourth Layer—and was completely stabilized. A faint pale-silver gleam flickered within his bones.

Feeling his explosively increased strength, Song Ankang's face was full of smiles. The constitution he had gained from transmigrating and fusing souls was truly incredible, far beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

No one would likely have imagined that, without the aid of Spirit Pills or miraculous medicines, Song Ankang had advanced from an ordinary person to Outer Forging Fourth Layer in only around ten days—the pinnacle of a Third-rate Warrior.

Moreover, after advancing to the Bone Tempering Realm, Song Ankang's overall strength soared again. In a head-on clash, even a warrior at Inner Refining First Layer would likely struggle to withstand him.

If his combat experience and techniques improved further, Song Ankang's overall strength would surely soar once again.

Therefore, after stabilizing his current realm, Song Ankang began cultivating a Demonic Technique for escaping with his life.

The demonic movement technique, Treading Snow Without a Trace!

Thanks to the excellent atmosphere in the Xia Kingdom's human cultivation world, where people generally did not guard their treasures like a broom they cherished, Song Ankang had once again selected a Seventh-Rank High-Grade demonic movement technique. It was also one of the Xia Kingdom human race's finest demonic movement techniques, enough to serve a cultivator for a lifetime.

As the name implied, Treading Snow Without a Trace meant that once it was cultivated to a sufficiently high realm, one could walk across snow without leaving the slightest mark. It was an exceptionally profound lightness technique, highly suited for long-distance dashes and equally powerful in short-range bursts.

Once successfully cultivated, it would at the very least multiply Song Ankang's ability to escape severalfold.

As the saying went, as long as the green hills remained, there would be no shortage of firewood. So long as a warrior remained alive, there would always come a day to make a comeback. This showed just how important an escape technique was.

Song Ankang had long wanted to cultivate an escape movement technique, but he had never found a suitable one. This time, among the cultivation methods and secret techniques Jiang Yunhe had brought, he had luckily found one that suited him.

Treading Snow Without a Trace did not sound like a demonic martial technique, but most cultivators unanimously regarded it as one. The reason was simple: its side effects were too severe. Thus, although it failed to meet the standards of a demonic martial technique in many respects, it was still classified as one.

Treading Snow Without a Trace had only one side effect: once one stopped cultivating it, the martial technique would inevitably regress, and it regressed at an astonishing speed beyond anyone's imagination.

One even had to spend a considerable amount of time practicing it every day, or this movement technique would decline. But who could devote so much time to a single movement technique?

That was precisely why, despite Treading Snow Without a Trace's astonishing power, it had still been included among demonic martial techniques.

But for Song Ankang, who could absorb side effects, such a side effect was exactly what he wanted most.

Treading Snow Without a Trace was not difficult to cultivate. If its side effects had not been so severe, many people would have chosen to cultivate this Seventh-Rank High-Grade movement technique.

After fusing with the original owner's soul, Song Ankang's comprehension had already been extremely high. Coupled with the enhancement to his mental will brought by cultivating the Seven Injuries Demonic Scripture, it took him only a few dozen hours to achieve initial mastery of Treading Snow Without a Trace.

Then Song Ankang stopped cultivating and quietly waited for Treading Snow Without a Trace's side effects to arrive.

"Your cultivation of Treading Snow Without a Trace has caused you to suffer its side effects. Treading Snow Without a Trace is about to regress... The Heavenly Book of Fate Defiance is taking effect, absorbing external energy and preparing to transform the side effects. Please wait!"

"The Heavenly Book of Fate Defiance has accumulated sufficient energy and is beginning to take effect... Your Treading Snow Without a Trace is improving!"

Only a few hours passed before the side effects of Treading Snow Without a Trace arrived. This also meant that once one cultivated Treading Snow Without a Trace, one had to practice it every few hours, spending quite a bit of time each time.

No wonder it was called a demonic martial technique. Without the Heavenly Book of Fate Defiance, even Song Ankang would not have been able to endure such side effects. But now... all he could think was, This is amazing!

With the Heavenly Book of Fate Defiance's aid, the side effects of Treading Snow Without a Trace were rapidly absorbed. Song Ankang could clearly feel that, under the feedback from this top-tier demonic movement technique's side effects, his movement technique realm was swiftly rising, and his understanding of Treading Snow Without a Trace was deepening more and more.

Strike while the iron was hot. Song Ankang immediately followed that insight and began cultivating Treading Snow Without a Trace. For a time, Song Ankang's figures filled the entire Training Room, his speed more than twice what it had been before.

Cultivating a movement technique and not cultivating one were fundamentally two different realms, not to mention that Song Ankang was cultivating one of the most elite demonic movement techniques.

After this wave of side effects ended, Song Ankang's Treading Snow Without a Trace had already entered the hall, matching more than half a month of bitter cultivation by an ordinary person.

The side effects of Treading Snow Without a Trace were truly wonderful. Song Ankang delightedly felt the dramatically increased power of Treading Snow Without a Trace, darting through the small Training Room like a wild goose, leisurely strolling as he displayed a carefree and elegant bearing.

If the other warriors cultivating Treading Snow Without a Trace learned of Song Ankang's current situation, who knew what they would think? They would surely be so envious and jealous that they cried aloud.

For everyone else, Treading Snow Without a Trace was fraught with troubles and terrifying side effects. Yet in Song Ankang's hands, it had become a tremendous blessing. Wasn't that infuriating?

But very soon, Song Ankang also felt that perhaps such side effects were a bit too excessive.