Hidden Force Seed, Thirty Refinements Long Saber!

Su Mu would rather not get involved in the conflict between the Black Mountain Army and the Qingyun Army. He currently only wants to resolve the蛊毒 (gu poison) within him and develop in a low-key manner.

However, things don't always go as planned.

Su Mu couldn't help but kill someone from the Black Mountain Army, and one person witnessed everything. The best course of action would be to kill Shi Feng as well, thus eliminating the potential risk of information leakage.

Thinking this, the young man shook his head resolutely.

Judging by how Shi Feng covered his retreat and held off four people to let him escape, this person wasn't a bad guy. In this chaotic world, there were many bad people and few good ones. Su Mu was not a ruthless person; he had his own moral bottom line and couldn't bring himself to do it.

Therefore, Su Mu turned and left immediately afterward, not intending to have any further dealings with Shi Feng.

But in the end, he still accepted the token.

"I must make plans early."

The matter of the Abandoned Child's gu poison made Su Mu realize he wouldn't be staying in Qingshui Town for long. He would eventually have to leave the town and go to Qingyun County to seek medical treatment. Qingyun County was the territory of the Qingyun Army, so the Qingyun Army token gifted by Shi Feng might come in handy in the future.

Next, following the official road, Su Mu arrived safely in Qingshui Town.

Su Mu originally thought Qingshui Town was quite large, but after returning from Qingyun County, he realized how small Qingshui Town actually was.

Walking through the town's streets and alleys, Su Mu could find his way even with his eyes closed. The familiarity of living there for over a year gave him a sense of peace.

"Hmm, are those people from the Black Tiger Gang?"

Su Mu quickly noticed several members of the Black Tiger Gang carrying large bags and packages, moving from one shop to another. Another person was leading a horse-drawn carriage behind them. Su Mu walked a few steps casually, his gaze slightly focused.

Their conversation drifted into his ears.

"Make sure you count everything, not a single item can be missed."

"The things needed for the birthday banquet must be prepared in advance. There are still many items on this list to purchase, so hurry up."

Birthday banquet?

Was someone from the Black Tiger Gang holding a birthday banquet with this setup?

Su Mu lost interest after listening for a few sentences. Whose birthday banquet it was in the Black Tiger Gang had nothing to do with him. Afterward, Su Mu returned to Dongbian Village.

Although this trip outside had a slight accident, at least there was a clue regarding the poison in his body, and Su Mu had a general direction. This was actually very significant.

Removing his straw cloak and bamboo hat, Su Mu took stock of his gains from this trip. He took out a few items from his clothes.

A sheepskin scroll and a tightly wrapped cloth bag.

"Could it be a prescription?"

Su Mu's eyes flickered slightly, but upon unfolding it, he discovered it wasn't a prescription at all, but a map. There was a red circle marked with cinnabar on the map, but the map itself had no place names, only mountains and rivers.

A treasure map?

Su Mu looked at it for a few moments before closing it. His gaze then fell on the package. This was taken from the leader of the Black Mountain Army soldiers. It felt like the outline of a book when he touched it.

Upon opening it.

It was indeed a book. The cover of the yellowed, old book had the characters Phoenix Dance Scroll on it.

Phoenix Dance Scroll?

Su Mu's heart beneath his chest beat slightly faster. A secret manual named after a phoenix and a phoenix was likely something extraordinary.

However, when Su Mu opened it with anticipation, he was stunned.

Vivid, spring-filled, and detailed paintings met his eyes.

After silently flipping through several pages, Su Mu, with a strange expression, closed the Phoenix Dance Scroll in his hand. He confirmed that this was indeed not a martial arts manual. How to put it?

"From an artistic perspective, the painting technique of the Phoenix Dance Scroll is truly remarkable..."

Composing himself, Su Mu ate his meal and then practiced his fist techniques in the courtyard. After the battle, Su Mu had a deeper understanding of the three martial arts he already possessed, especially the Rock Shattering Fist.

Frowning slightly, he downed a large bowl of Three-Complete Body Strengthening Soup. As fine beads of sweat seeped from his skin, soaking his clothes, Su Mu entered a state of cultivation.

The sun set in the west, and night fell. A figure was still engrossed in the continuous practice of the Rock Shattering Fist. Su Mu, with his high Comprehension of 12 points, reaching the level of Excellent Talent, Raw Jade, suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

Su Mu continued to punch, finally capturing this spark of inspiration. He entered a subtle state of self-forgetfulness.

Everything began to improve. Gradually, Su Mu felt many acupoints in his body vibrating. As his blood surged, the Force flowing through his limbs and meridians also underwent an unprecedented change.

This was a sudden change.

Within the fierce Force, a new Force was being nurtured.

"Is Hidden Force about to be born?!"

Su Mu's eyes lit up. This feeling was familiar. With a slight recollection, he remembered that it was somewhat similar to the experience when Force was first born within him.

Buzz--------

Soon, all the acupoints around Su Mu's body resonated, and a wisp of gentle Force was born. This was a seed of Hidden Force. Su Mu couldn't be considered truly undergoing the second stage of Qi Refining yet.

What he needed to do was to nurture the Force, just like before. Once this seed of Hidden Force was nurtured and grew strong, he could then attempt the second stage of Qi Refining, and only then would he truly master Hidden Force.

One stage of Qi Refining, one heaven!

"Theoretical knowledge alone is insufficient; the ancients did not deceive me..."

Su Mu exhaled a long breath, a look of joy on his face. He hadn't expected that killing a few Black Mountain Army bandits would allow a seed of Hidden Force to be born within him.

With the experience from his first time cultivating Hidden Force, Su Mu spent half a year on it last time. Now, he no longer has to worry about money, and with his Excellent Talent, Raw Jade-level Comprehension, he's confident he can complete the second stage of cultivating Hidden Force in less time than before—half the original time, or even less!

Under the cover of night, Su Mu left the village and quietly made his way to the back mountain.

He casually found a thick tree that required one person to encircle it. With a thought, he mobilized the Hidden Force that had just been born within him and threw a punch.

This punch didn't carry the usual whistling wind of his past strikes. It looked like a casual blow. The moment his fist connected with the tree trunk, there was only a faint thud, and the trunk trembled slightly.

Seeing this, Su Mu's eyes lit up. He looked closely and saw that the outer bark of the tree trunk was completely unharmed.

However, as Su Mu clenched his palm into a claw and pressed it against the spot where his fist had struck, his five fingers dug in slightly, like steel blades piercing the wood. With a slight pull, he tore.

Chira.

As the bark was ripped away, wood chips flew. A fist-sized hole had appeared in the tree trunk, the wood inside pulverized into powder.

"Penetrating the body to injure... this is Hidden Force!"

Su Mu's eyes gleamed at the sight. If he had mastered this Hidden Force during the day and used it to unleash Rock Shattering Fist, those Black Mountain Army soldiers, even with their padded armor, would have died on the spot with no chance of survival.

In the days that followed, it was as if the gu poison and the Black Mountain Army incident had never happened. Su Mu's life returned to its peaceful, yet fulfilling, rhythm.

Clang, clang, clang----------

Deafening clashes of metal echoed as his Hidden Force rapidly grew within him.

Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.

Su Mu had finished tens of thousands of blows on the iron billet before him. The billet had shed all its impurities and reached its limit.

"Time for the next step."

Five days later, a long saber radiating a faint green light was pulled from the water tank. Droplets of water rapidly fell from the mirror-smooth blade, creating a small rain shower.

The chilling aura emanating from the saber caused the two blacksmith apprentices beside Su Mu to instinctively step back. They felt a stinging sensation on their skin and swallowed hard, their faces filled with shock.

Yet, in the eyes of one of them, a fleeting trace of guilt and unease flickered.