When it came to the Blood Burning Technique,
even practicing it made Yun Shu wary of grinding its proficiency too much each day.
Just imagine, he could grind and grind until he ground himself out of existence.
He could master the Blood Escape Technique in a single day, but what then? His qi and blood would run dry, and he would wither away. Once he reached a certain point, he would simply be gone.
So Yun Shu only circulated it once. The qi and blood he expended could be replenished quickly.
His proficiency had increased by only one point, but at least he now understood the principle behind it. He could use it in a crisis, and continue practicing tomorrow.
By midday, Yun Shu continued deeper into the forest.
Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves were pack animals, and they had their own territory.
The map had already marked it, too.
Once he spotted wolf tracks, he was practically looking at Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves already.
As luck would have it, the Three-Eyed Demonic Wolf leading the pack looked right at Yun Shu.
The two sides had already crossed paths, more or less.
The Three-Eyed Demonic Wolf leader bared its teeth. The vertical eye on its forehead glimmered with a dark, eerie light as it glared fiercely at Yun Shu.
There were a dozen or so Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves.
Wolves lived in family groups, but a pack could still grow quite large.
This was clearly a medium-sized pack.
Demonic Beasts were vicious, but they didn't charge right away. Wild animals had an extremely keen sense of their surroundings. On top of that, Yun Shu had just broken through, and his strength had yet to fully stabilize. His aura was even more unsteady, something the Wolf King could naturally sense.
Faced with a human who posed such a threat, the Wolf King's first instinct was to drive him away.
Yun Shu narrowed his eyes slightly.
A dozen or so of them. Shouldn't be too hard to fight?
Whatever. He'd fight first and think about it later.
Yun Shu thrust out his hand, grabbing at one of the Demon Wolves.
The wolf instantly became unable to move, pinned down by Yun Shu's aura.
He flung it into a distant tree. The tree snapped, and the wolf's aura weakened considerably. It struggled for a long time but still couldn't get up.
Its spine was probably broken.
Yun Shu couldn't bear to let it suffer any longer. He drew his Long Sword and finished it off.
Yun Shu absorbed and devoured the Demon Wolf's Demonic Heart.
He glanced at his rising Energy Points and lightly licked his lips.
Five hundred for one Demon Wolf.
So, one, two, three, four...
Fourteen in all.
After setting aside the three he had to hand over to the sect, that still left eleven!
It all happened in a flash. Yun Shu had already dealt with a Demon Wolf comparable to a cultivator at the first level of the Qi Condensation Stage.
The pack leader glared fiercely and let out a sudden howl.
The vertical eyes of the entire pack opened.
In the end, streams of black energy gathered and surged toward Yun Shu.
"Pupil Technique? I can do that too!"
Golden light burst from Yun Shu's eyes. In an instant, the streaks of black light melted away like fresh snow beneath the warm sun.
The Wolf King was shocked and furious. It had clearly realized that the person before it was far too powerful. If it didn't make up its mind to attack now, its whole pack might be buried here.
But they had clearly underestimated the power of that golden light.
An immense pressure swept over them, leaving the Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves' eyes glazed for a moment. It was as if they were facing the mighty wrath of heaven itself; the crushing force made it hard to breathe.
In that instant,
Yun Shu moved.
Ghost Shadow Steps flowed beneath his feet, and his fists were scythes in the hands of Death.
Nearly every time he reached a wolf, he punched straight through its body.
Their copper skin and iron bones crumpled like tofu, smashed apart with ease.
Golden light enveloped Yun Shu, making him look like an invincible god of war.
In the blink of an eye, four Demon Wolves lay dead.
The Wolf King was the first to recover. It was also the first to charge at Yun Shu.
Its claws, sharp as blades, slashed down at him.
Yun Shu neither dodged nor retreated. His Long Sword flashed from its sheath, descending on the Wolf King like a bolt of lightning.
A tremendous howl rang out as the Wolf King was split in two from the head down.
Blood spilled, but the moment it touched the golden light around Yun Shu, it turned straight to vapor.
The remaining Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves continued to lunge at Yun Shu, snapping and tearing at him.
The Demon Wolves' most fearsome weapons were their claws and teeth. The Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves could also wield Spiritual Energy. Though it was a Pupil Technique, it still counted as an extraordinary natural ability.
"Come on!" Yun Shu unleashed one fist and kick after another. Some were Martial Techniques he already knew, like Thunderclap Fist and Falling Cloud Palm.
Others were new Martial Techniques, like Diamond Body and Diamond Hand.
He couldn't use his Pupil Technique anymore.
Practicing it earlier had drained his Mental Energy and left his head a little foggy.
He had just used it again, and now he was struggling to bear the strain. It wouldn't affect him too badly, but using it a second time in such a short span was out of the question.
He grabbed two wolves as they lunged at him. While the Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves were still struggling, he suddenly smashed their heads together.
Golden light cloaked Yun Shu's hands and shimmered around his body. The two Demon Wolves' blood didn't splatter onto him.
Behind him, a Demon Wolf seized its chance, trying to catch him off guard and tear into his throat from the rear. Yun Shu activated Ghost Shadow Steps, and the Three-Eyed Demonic Wolf lunged at empty air.
His Long Sword quivered. After Yun Shu smashed a wolf behind him with a punch, he kicked the sword's hilt. Sword Qi arced through the air, pinning the wolf that had just pounced against a tree trunk.
Less than half an hour later,
the ground was soaked in blood. After absorbing the last Demon Wolf, Yun Shu's Energy Points had reached 10,600.
The Wolf King alone had added more than a thousand points, equivalent to over thirty Origin Nurturing Pills.
That would be enough for him to cultivate for a while.
The three remaining Demon Wolves trembled all over, their eyes full of fear.
They wanted to run, but Yun Shu chased them back.
Now, when they met Yun Shu's gaze, they were even more afraid to flee.
By the time Yun Shu emerged from the forest, leading the three Demon Wolves on a hemp rope, Lin Yang had been waiting outside anxiously for quite some time.
Seeing Yun Shu come out, he hurried over. "Junior Brother Yun, you've been gone for four days!"
Yun Shu nodded slightly, then smiled. "Let's head back to the sect. The last mission is complete."
"Junior Brother Yun, why do you smell so strongly of blood?" Lin Yang glanced at the Three-Eyed Demonic Wolves tied behind Yun Shu. They were all covered in blood and looked as though they'd been beaten badly.
"Do I?" Yun Shu lightly sniffed his clothes. He did smell a bit. "Demon Wolves live in packs. If you want to capture one alive, you have to kill all the others."
Lin Yang: "..."
Then he said earnestly, "Junior Brother Yun, if you keep killing like this, you might develop an Inner Demon."
Yun Shu looked at Lin Yang. His expression paused, and he seemed thoughtful.
But it wasn't because of the killing. If killing a few Demonic Beasts could give someone an Inner Demon, then no one should bother cultivating in a world where the strong preyed on the weak.
He was thinking about something else.
Right, an Inner Demon!
That was a good reminder. If he practiced the Demonic Cultivation Technique with the system's help, wouldn't he be able to cultivate even faster?
Besides, demonic cultivation was one of the myriad paths, and it could lead to divinity too!
Even in the Divine Realm, there were Big Shot Demonic Cultivators at the very pinnacle.
It was worth considering when the opportunity arose.
Back at the sect, Lin Yang said, "I've still got a few Golden Python Tiger Cubs over there. I left them in my room, and I have no idea what they're like now."
Before you continue