A Military Camp Deep in the Mountains

Mount Mang lay more than three hundred li west of Wan City, at the crossroads where Wan City, Li City, and Chong City met.

Mount Mang did not refer to a single peak, but was the collective name for several great mountains stretching hundreds of li.

A tributary of the vast Azure Dragon River ran through it, creating a landscape of mountains and waters. Since ancient times, it had been a breeding ground for Ferocious Beasts and the first choice for Martial Academy disciples from the three cities to venture out for training.

Under the cover of Nightfall, a team clad in leather armor and armed with vicious weapons raced toward Mount Mang.

Among the crowd, Gu Yang wore a focused expression, maintaining the footwork of Azure Dragon Dance even as he ran.

A quarter of an hour later, a line of small text suddenly flashed before his eyes.

Azure Dragon Dance proficiency +1

"Just as I thought."

The corner of Gu Yang's mouth curled upward, his heart filled with the joy of seeing his guess come true.

His reasoning was simple. Since Azure Dragon Dance was formed by merging three Martial Techniques—fist, leg, and footwork—then using only its footwork to travel should also increase its proficiency.

And the truth was exactly as he had expected. When he traveled at full speed, his proficiency truly did increase.

Although it could not compare to fighting an evenly matched opponent, the proficiency rose much faster than when he practiced the forms by himself.

The sun set, and the moon climbed above the treetops.

The team did not rest for a moment, pressing onward without pause.

Along the way, the scenery before them gradually changed from villages brimming with signs of human life into a stretch of withered yellow wilderness.

Even though these disciples were all Blood Condensation martial artists, with swift steps and enduring stamina, exhaustion eventually covered their faces.

Naturally, Gu Yang was the exception.

For Gu Yang, not only did his talent, Vitality Surge, constantly restore his stamina, but a small line of text reading "proficiency +1" flashed before his eyes every quarter of an hour.

This immediate feedback from his improvement left him not only free of fatigue, but more excited and more energized with every step.

Before the Hour of the Pig, the team had just reached the foot of Mount Mang. Master Liao, the Martial Academy instructor leading them, immediately raised a hand. "Stop. Rest where you are for a quarter of an hour, then we enter the mountain!"

The team instantly scattered, sitting down to rest in the same small groups they had formed earlier.

Yet even while resting, none of the disciples let down their guard. Each of them gripped their weapons tightly.

"Whew..."

Gu Yang let out a long breath and sat down like the others to rest.

He held his weapon in hand and gently closed his eyes.

Skills: Blood Nourishing Stance · Major Accomplishment (106/400); Azure Dragon Dance · Minor Accomplishment (191/1000), Life-Slaying Saber · Minor Accomplishment (7/200)

Talents: Vitality Surge, Power Surge, Mighty Ox Strength, Killing Intent Perception.

They had set out from the Martial Academy after the midpoint of the Hour of the Rooster and arrived before the Hour of the Pig.

In merely an hour and a half, Azure Dragon Dance's proficiency had risen by a full twelve points.

Though it was not as effective as sparring for the same amount of time, it was still far better than practicing forms for an entire day.

"Whew, huff..."

Noisy panting continued to echo through the wilderness. Soon, a quarter of an hour passed, and the disciples rose one after another as the team set off again.

After entering the mountain, although they followed a path that had long since been opened up, the team's pace quickly slowed.

At the same time, Master Liao's voice repeatedly rang out from the front of the group.

"In the outer mountains, Ferocious Beasts generally will not appear except on extremely rare occasions. But even so, you must not lower your guard. The dangers in the mountains are too numerous to count. Besides Ferocious Beasts, there are venomous insects, poisonous snakes, and even certain plants carrying paralytic toxins. If they scratch your skin, your body will quickly stiffen and lose all sensation. Should danger strike then, you can only wait for death."

Shing!

A flash of saber light swept through the air. A Giant Python as thick as the mouth of a bowl, which had suddenly lunged down from a nearby tree, was cleaved in two and fell from a branch not far away.

Master Liao calmly sheathed his saber and continued onward, his voice never stopping. "In the mountains, daytime and nighttime are completely different. Many insects and beasts rest during the day and only emerge at night. The reason the Martial Academy always arranges for everyone to enter the mountains at night is to let you experience just how many dangers lurk among the mountains after dark."

Gu Yang glanced at the python, slowly lowered the hand gripping his saber, and continued listening carefully to Master Liao's instruction.

"Five zhang..."

At the same time, he silently calculated the distance between himself and that python.

Just before the python had lunged out, an intense signal had erupted in Gu Yang's mind: something over there was hiding in the shadows, coveting them.

But before he could even raise his saber, Master Liao had instantly killed the python. That powerful signal was abruptly cut off and vanished.

Gu Yang immediately understood. This was likely the effect of the talent, Killing Intent Perception.

The team continued onward, while Master Liao's voice continued to ring out.

Walking amid the team, Gu Yang listened intently while splitting his attention, constantly sensing the killing intent that occasionally came from every direction.

They walked for another full hour.

After that hour, the view before them suddenly opened up. Within a mountain ravine one li ahead, an enormous camp spanning over a hundred zhang came into Gu Yang's sight.

Groups of soldiers clad in half-body steel armor and armed with long sabers moved in and out of the camp, patrolling the surroundings.

The others had all come here several times before and remained perfectly calm.

Only Gu Yang, though his face remained composed, revealed his overwhelming shock through his wildly contracting pupils.

There was actually a military camp of such scale deep within the mountains!

And judging from the soldiers constantly moving about within it, this military camp was clearly still operating normally.

At that moment, two scouts in leather armor emerged from the forest and approached them, greeting Master Liao. "Lord Liao."

"Mm, you've worked hard." Master Liao nodded to the two scouts, then led everyone onward.

Very soon, the military camp's gate, more than three zhang tall, came into view.

Master Liao's voice rang out again. "The rest of you may disperse. Return to the section assigned to the Martial Academy on your own. Gu Yang, come with me. It's your first time here, so I need to take you to register your information."

"Yes." The other disciples immediately scattered, forming small teams as they walked ahead. Only Gu Yang turned his steps and came to Master Liao's side.

The two entered the camp, and Gu Yang's eyes immediately gleamed as he looked around.

Before him stretched a broad Training Ground, with two rows of weapon racks beside it. Gu Yang guessed this was where the army trained and assembled before setting out.

After crossing the Training Ground and heading farther inside, they came upon rows of barracks where military clerks handled their work. Even though it was already midnight, the lights within those barracks still blazed brightly.

Master Liao clearly knew where new arrivals registered their information. After roughly confirming the direction, he led Gu Yang straight toward one of the barracks.