Should the Truly Strong All Be as Humble as Empty Valleys?

Another part of Brook Stone Forest.

Lin Jiang was covered in wounds, the long spear in his hands floundering left and right. He was already on the decline.

Locked in battle with him were two huge vicious wolves covered in ring patterns. Judging by their auras, one was at the early ninth grade, and the other at the mid ninth grade.

Ring-Patterned Wolves were not considered strong among ninth-grade strange beasts in terms of strength.

But they were exceedingly cunning, never appeared alone, and even coordinated with one another.

"If this drags on, it'll be bad for me."

Lin Jiang's brows were tightly furrowed.

Even if his trial had to end here, he had to decide victory and defeat as soon as possible.

His injuries were not light right now. If he drew in more Ring-Patterned Wolves, he feared more ill fortune than good.

Among the true disciples, Murong Xiao possessed a half-demon body, and Ying Bing needed even less mention—even geniuses would despair before her.

Li Mo... he had heard his popularity was excellent?

In short, only he was obscure and nameless.

Lin Jiang had broken through to six meridians in the Blood-Qi Realm and had also trained his spear art to minor mastery. He was more than capable of handling most mid ninth-grade strange beasts, and he had originally wanted to shock everyone with a single cry.

Stopping here really left him somewhat unwilling.

"I'll risk it!"

Lin Jiang had one ultimate move, originally intended for a late ninth-grade strange beast.

He stirred his blood and qi, then suddenly thrust his spear straight out. Its speed tore through the air.

That Ring-Tail Wolf with the slightly stronger aura was pierced through by one spear strike.

However...

"Awooo!"

The early ninth-grade one actually had no intention of avenging its companion. Instead, it let out a howl.

"Not good, it's calling the wolf pack!"

Lin Jiang's expression changed instantly.

But he had just used his killing move, and his strength was weak for the moment. He was actually too late to stop it.

The next moment.

Something strange happened.

"Awooo... wuwuwu..."

The howl calling the wolf pack actually turned into a wail in the next instant.

A figure came out of the stone forest, carrying a Ring-Patterned Wolf by the scruff.

"You're a true disciple, right? Called... Lin Jiang?"

The voice sounded like a smile that was not quite a smile, carrying some kind of pressure.

"Hm?"

"Wang Hu?"

Lin Jiang recognized the newcomer.

It was a little impolite to say.

During the Entrance Ceremony, Wang Hu had rolled down from the Heaven-Ascending Stone Steps like a rolling gourd on the ground, and with that roll, he had rolled straight from the inner sect to the outer sect.

Everyone in the sect knew about this. It was hard not to recognize him.

Looking at him now, the other party's true strength seemed no weaker than his own.

"Many thanks, Brother Wang."

Lin Jiang let out a breath.

"Heh, the one you killed is yours, the one I caught is mine. No objections, right?"

Wang Hu twisted the Red-Ringed Wolf's neck in one motion.

"Of course."

Lin Jiang sighed in relief.

It was already quite good that this mid ninth-grade beast could count as his spoils.

Glug, glug—

Lin Jiang had just fired the signal arrow when the sound of someone drinking deeply suddenly came over.

He turned his head, and his brows could not help furrowing even deeper than before.

He saw Wang Hu biting open the Red-Ringed Wolf's neck, drinking great mouthfuls of its foul, fishy wolf blood, his face even filled with enjoyment.

Lin Jiang could not help feeling a chill of revulsion in his heart.

"Two Red-Ringed Wolves."

"One counts for Lin Jiang, one counts for Wang Hu."

The nearest deacon hurried over, gave them a simple inspection, then lifted the two wolf corpses and left.

The deacon's figure receded into the distance.

"I'll take my leave."

Lin Jiang cupped his hands and also planned to go.

This Wang Hu gave him an uncomfortable feeling, and after seeing that scene just now, he truly did not want to have too much contact with him.

He had only taken two steps.

"Who said you could leave?"

A sudden rustling came from behind him.

Lin Jiang stopped in his tracks. When he turned back, his pupils abruptly shrank.

He saw Wang Hu's arms swelling at a bizarre speed, rapidly sprouting mottled fur.

The look Wang Hu cast his way had almost lost all human emotion, leaving only a wild beast's bloodthirst and savagery.

Just now—

Had Wang Hu deliberately lured away the deacon closest to this place?

"You!"

Whoosh—

Before Lin Jiang could speak, a foul gust of wind was already pouncing into his face.

At the same time.

Not far away.

"What's that commotion up ahead?"

Li Mo was bare-chested, weaving through the stone forest.

Don't misunderstand. Little Li didn't have any special fetish; he mainly felt bad for the clothes his mother had sewn by hand. Since they wouldn't survive once the fighting started anyway, he had simply put them into the System Space.

Hearing the intense sounds of battle ahead, he quickened his pace.

Then—

The moment he got there, he saw two figures locked in combat.

Lin Jiang was clearly at a disadvantage, forced into an extremely wretched state, blood streaming from wounds all over his body.

If this went on, even if the other party didn't kill him, he would probably bleed out.

"Lin Jiang is fighting what kind of strange beast?"

"No, this isn't a strange beast..."

Li Mo noticed something was wrong.

The Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye swept over.

[Name: Lin Jiang]

[Age: 16]

[Root Bone: Mantis Leg, Green Snake Spine, Magpie-Patterned Shoulder]

[Realm: Blood-Qi Realm, Six Meridians.]

[Heavenly Mandate: Blue-Black]

[Evaluation: This person's talent is passable, yet he is eager for quick success and instant benefit; too rigid and easily broken. If he awakens in time, it may not be impossible for him to climb another floor higher.]

[Recent Encounter: After a fierce battle, before he has even regulated his breath, he encounters Wang Hu, whose mind has already been devoured by the Beast Seed. Though it will not cost him his life, after suffering severe injuries, he will never recover from the setback.]

"That's Wang Hu?"

Li Mo's brow lifted slightly.

Taking a Beast Seed actually made a person turn into this ghostly state?

Also, Wang Hu was clearly trying to kill him, but the Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye said Lin Jiang wouldn't die in the end...

Was it the elders?

Understanding rose in Li Mo's heart.

It should be the elders, who had been silently watching Wang Hu's movements all along.

Only, for some unknown reason, they had not acted directly.

But they also couldn't watch a true disciple die for nothing, so in the end they would save Lin Jiang.

"If the elders save him, that's still saving him."

"I'll make a move and get one more blue investment."

"Wang Hu, you and I have no grudge or feud!"

"Killing a fellow disciple is a grave crime! Stop now, and I can still pretend nothing happened."

Lin Jiang's aura was growing weaker and weaker.

He knew he no longer had any chance of winning. He could only hope his words would make the other party hesitate.

"The Red-Ringed Wolf had no grudge or feud with you either."

"The weak are meat for the strong. You're weaker than me, so you become my blood food. What crime is there in that?"

Wang Hu licked a trace of blood clean from his tiger claws, the vicious gleam in his eyes growing even fiercer.

Lin Jiang clenched his teeth until they nearly shattered, and he knew there was no possibility of peace between them now.

Today, either he died, or Wang Hu did!

The foul wind came howling again.

He could only force up every bit of strength in his body and prepare to use his killing move once more.

But he had lost too much blood and exhausted too much stamina. This spear thrust was far from as swift and fierce as the last one.

Halfway through the thrust—

Across from him, Wang Hu gave a savage grin and actually flipped his palm, seizing the shaft of the spear.

Then his clawed palm came crashing down.

Let alone a human head—even a block of bluestone would be smashed into pieces by this palm.

Lin Jiang sighed inwardly.

Was his life truly going to end here?

A thunderous crash rang out.

"Hm?"

Lin Jiang was astonished to find that his head had not been smashed apart as he had expected.

Instead, Wang Hu was the one staggering back several steps, each step leaving a deep pit in the ground.

A youth with a lean, powerful upper body like a cheetah had appeared in front of him at some unknown moment, blocking the attack.

"Disciple Li?"

Lin Jiang was stunned.

"Li Mo, you're still so fond of poking your nose into other people's business!"

"Good. You came at just the right time. I was worried I wouldn't be able to find you!"

Wang Hu had completely lost the feigned calm from just now. From the moment he saw Li Mo, he looked more and more like a mad beast.

Some people, merely by appearing, could make him lose his composure.

"Stop shouting. Stand there obediently."

"When the inner sect deacons arrive, wait for the sect to pass judgment."

Li Mo frowned lightly.

Having saved Lin Jiang, his investment was already complete.

He did not know what the elders were planning, and he could not be bothered to do anything unnecessary.

"You're courting death!"

In Wang Hu's eyes, that attitude meant Li Mo did not take him seriously at all.

And so, he completely lost control.

Not only his arms—flesh and blood all over his body began to swell, dense fur growing out. A tiger tail also burst forth, sweeping back and forth like a steel whip.

Where was there even a trace of human shape left?

He was simply a standing, striped ferocious tiger!

His scarlet eyes looked as if they wanted to swallow Li Mo alive and flay him raw as he suddenly pounced!

"Brother Li, be careful!"

Lin Jiang's heart went cold as he shouted.

He could sense that Wang Hu's aura at this moment was even more terrifying than before.

Even a peak ninth-grade strange beast was probably no more than this!

He immediately took out a signaling arrow and fired it.

Seeing that Li Mo neither dodged nor avoided, he anxiously spoke again:

"Brother Li, hurry and leave, or none of us will be able to..."

Bang—

A muffled thud rang out.

The enormous tiger claw slammed into Li Mo's fist.

The contrast was enormous.

But the result nearly made Lin Jiang's eyes pop out.

The fur-covered tiger arm instantly burst into inch after inch of bloody mist, snapping as if it had no bones at all.

Li Mo showed neither sorrow nor joy.

He grabbed Wang Hu by the head again and, with a flip of his palm, smashed him into the ground.

Boom—

The ground shattered.

"With a windup that long, I thought you were about to pull out something big."

"Practicing an evil art took one move. Not practicing it still took one move. Tell me, why did you make yourself neither human nor ghost?"

Li Mo spoke lightly.

Wang Hu's eyes rolled back, and he lost consciousness.

No one knew whether he had been knocked out by the slam, or whether he had heard Li Mo's words and fainted dead away from grief and fury.

Very soon, the bestial state on Wang Hu's body disappeared, and he turned back into human form.

His aura immediately plunged a thousand li, like an old man who was a candle guttering in the wind.

Not far away.

Lin Jiang's mouth hung wide open, big enough to swallow at least two eggs whole.

Wang Hu, who was equivalent to a peak ninth-grade exotic beast, had been instantly defeated?

It really had only taken one move?

To be honest, he even had the feeling that Li Mo had not used his full strength.

Otherwise, Wang Hu would not merely have been knocked unconscious. Beating him to death outright would have been easy.

They had clearly joined the Clear Abyss Sect together.

Why was he so strong it made people despair?

Besides, Lin Jiang had entered with skills already under his belt. Before joining the Clear Abyss Sect, he had already studied at a martial hall for a very long time.

When Li Mo had entered the sect, he had not even opened his meridians.

He had been a completely powerless ordinary person, with no strength even to truss a chicken. Back then, Lin Jiang could have easily beaten a hundred Li Mos.

How long had it been?

Just as Lin Jiang was doubting his life.

A wooden box was handed before his eyes.

"Here. For external use."

At the same time, a clear, sunny voice reached him.

"Hundred Flower Dew Ointment. It works wonders on external injuries."

"This..."

Lin Jiang came back to his senses and looked up to see that sunny smiling face.

He did not hesitate then, silently applying the medicine to his wounds.

At the same time.

[Investment successful. Invested half a bottle of Hundred Flower Dew Ointment.]

[Feedback obtained: one copy of the martial art Golden Bell Shield. Claim?]

"Do not claim."

After replying to the system in his heart, Li Mo waved at Lin Jiang.

"All right. Wait here for the steward."

"I'm in a hurry, so I'll be going first."

With that, he strode onward toward Moon-Gazing Cliff.

"Brother Li, take care!"

Lin Jiang gazed at his departing back, and a trace of awe and worship could not help rising in his heart.

That wound medicine was extremely effective. After he applied it, the bleeding stopped at once.

Not only had his life been saved, he could even continue participating in the trial.

"He saved my life without seeking anything in return."

"Could it be that true experts should all have valleys in their chests and humility in their hearts...?"

Lin Jiang seemed to ponder something, then stood back up.