Reason for the Riot

The team split into two groups. One group escorted the wounded and the four shaken Left Wing Guards, carrying most of the hunt, and trudged toward the mountain exit under Lin Ming's reluctant yet helpless gaze.

The other group consisted of just four people and one horse—Lin Zhiyan, with a sword on her back, at the center; Li Bufan leading the horse; and the silent Nanny Wu and the newly appointed Guard Coach Qin Shi following behind.

The atmosphere was heavy and murderous. Under Li Bufan's lead, the four-person squad moved swiftly deeper into the forest on the left flank. Li Bufan walked at the front, holding the horse's reins, his gaze sweeping the surroundings warily as he carefully identified the faint traces left on the way in and the general direction pointed out by the four guards.

The deeper they went, the more unsettling the air became. Winter forests were usually quiet, but there would always be some bird calls or beast tracks. Now, however, the silence was dead and terrifying, as if every living thing had fled far from this area.

The snow-covered ground was littered with chaotic animal tracks—Snow Wolves, Snow Deer, and even bear tracks from creatures that should have been hibernating deeper in the mountains. All the tracks pointed outward, as if the beasts were fleeing in panic.

Qin Shi crouched to examine several tracks and said in a low voice, "Young Miss, the tracks are messy and panicked, like they were driven by extreme fright. And the mix of species—natural enemies running side by side—that's not normal."

From atop the horse, Lin Zhiyan's cool voice rang out: "Keep moving. Stay alert."

Li Bufan's uneasy premonition grew stronger. He pushed his blood and energy to full throttle, sharpening his five senses to the limit, trying to catch any anomaly in the wind.

After advancing a few more li, they had fully entered the untouched depths of the Primeval Forest. The trees here were taller and thicker, their canopies blocking out the sky, making it dim and gloomy even in daylight.

Suddenly, Li Bufan stopped in his tracks and raised his hand sharply to signal a halt. He tilted his head, listening, and his expression shifted. "There's movement! Far away, but... strong!"

The moment his words fell, the ground seemed to tremble slightly! Then, a muffled hiss, as if from deep within the earth, and a savage, bloodthirsty roar echoed faintly from the farthest depths of the forest!

Though the distance was vast and the sounds blurred, the terrifying pressure and surging energy within them made the three people present—except Lin Zhiyan—pale in an instant!

"Is that... a Qi Condensation Beast?!" Qin Shi exclaimed in shock, his hand instantly gripping the hilt of his blade as cold sweat beaded on his forehead. Nanny Wu's murky old eyes flashed with a startling gleam, and she unconsciously stepped closer to the horse.

Li Bufan felt as if an invisible hand had clenched his heart, his breath catching in his throat! The power level in those sounds far exceeded his understanding of Fierce Beasts. It was a pure, savage terror laced with the fluctuations of Vital Energy—a world apart from the Snow Wolf he had encountered earlier!

Lin Zhiyan dismounted. Still in her white robes and veiled face, her exposed eyes were sharp as swords, fixed on the direction of the sounds. Her tone was slightly grave: "Not ordinary beasts... The Vital Energy fluctuations suggest Qi Condensation Beasts that have advanced some distance are fighting!"

Qi Condensation? Li Bufan was baffled! He was merely at the Skin Tempering Realm. The next major stage in martial cultivation—drawing external Vital Energy into the body and refining it—was far beyond the knowledge of a newly hired guard from a county mansion.

Once a beast stepped into the Qi Condensation Realm, its strength underwent a earth-shattering transformation, far beyond what Body Tempering Realm Warriors could handle. No wonder it had triggered such a massive Beast Tide!

"Young Miss, this place is dangerous! A fight between Qi Condensation Beasts can affect a wide area. We must retreat immediately!" Nanny Wu said, her tone carrying a hint of gravity.

Qin Shi quickly chimed in: "Nanny Wu is right! Young Miss, your life is too valuable to risk. We should withdraw at once!"

Lin Zhiyan didn't answer immediately. She gazed into the distance for a moment, where another violent crash and an enraged beast roar erupted. She could even see trees toppling and snow dust rising faintly on the far horizon.

Hearing this, Li Bufan took a deep breath, suppressing the tremor in his heart, and asked, "Young Miss, what exactly is Qi Condensation?"

Lin Zhiyan didn't reply, but Coach Qin spoke up: "I've talked about the Body Tempering Realm before—skin, flesh, sinew, bone, blood. That's the Five Foundation Barriers. All that tempering of the body is to prepare for drawing in the Vital Energy of heaven and earth. Being able to draw it in and refine it—that's the Qi Condensation Realm..."

Though Li Bufan was lost in the clouds, he roughly understood: Qi Condensation was the next step after Body Tempering. But for a small fry like him at the Skin Tempering Realm, that level was still a million miles away.

Boom! A violent collision jolted the bewildered Li Bufan awake.

Lin Zhiyan said, "Nanny Wu, Coach Qin, come with me to take a look. Li Bufan, stay here with the horse."

Her command was concise and decisive, leaving no room for argument. She dismounted gracefully, landing as lightly as a feather without a sound. Nanny Wu and Qin Shi immediately acknowledged, their auras turning sharp and focused like drawn swords, flanking Lin Zhiyan on either side.

Qin Shi quickly muttered to Li Bufan, "Guard the horse. Conceal your presence. No matter what you hear, don't approach."

Li Bufan's heart tightened, and he nodded firmly. "Understood!" He knew the beings fighting in the distance were far beyond his ability to interfere. Forcing his way in would only make him a burden.

He immediately tightened the reins and led the horse to a natural hollow formed by several large rocks, hiding it as best he could. Then he crouched low, held his breath, and minimized his presence, his eyes locked on the three swiftly retreating figures.

Lin Zhiyan and the others moved incredibly fast. Lin Zhiyan, in particular, didn't use her full speed, but her figure flickered as she glided forward, her white robes standing out in the dim forest yet blending oddly with the environment.

Nanny Wu and Qin Shi followed closely. Though their movements weren't as ethereal as Lin Zhiyan's, they were steady and swift, revealing their deep cultivation.

Within moments, the three vanished into the dense forest.

Left behind were only Li Bufan and a slightly restless horse. The terrifying roars and hisses from a few li away hadn't stopped; in fact, they seemed more intense. Each boom made the ground tremble faintly and tightened Li Bufan's heart.

He clenched his fists, his nails nearly digging into his palms. It was a complex feeling. On one hand, there was awe and fear of the unknown, overwhelming power—the might of a Qi Condensation Beast far exceeded his imagination, and just hearing its roar was hard to bear. On the other hand, a barely suppressible longing and curiosity sprouted deep within him.

So this was the realm after Body Tempering? Drawing on the Vital Energy of heaven and earth, wielding the power to split mountains and crack stones! Compared to his current stage of tempering his skin, it was like heaven and earth! How would the Young Miss and the others deal with such an existence?

Time crawled by in tension and anxiety. The sounds of battle in the distance sometimes deafening, sometimes low, as if locked in a brutal tug-of-war. Li Bufan's heart felt like it was being fried in oil, rising and falling.

He strained his ears, trying to catch more information from the wind, but aside from the heart-stopping roars and crashes, he heard nothing else.

Suddenly, a particularly shrill and piercing snake hiss rang out, followed by a Brutal Bear's earth-shaking roar of pain and fury! Even from such a distance, Li Bufan felt the air around him compress, as if an invisible hammer had struck his chest, sending his blood surging!

"Not good!" Li Bufan's face turned pale. This was far more terrifying than before!

He stared fixedly in that direction, his heart pounding so hard it felt like it would leap out of his throat. How were the Young Miss and the others?

But the expected, even fiercer clash didn't continue. After the Brutal Bear's violent roar, the sounds quickly faded, ending in a reluctant whimper before falling silent. Only the Boa Constrictor's intermittent, clearly weak and pained hissing remained.

It was over? Both sides wounded? Or...

Li Bufan wasn't sure and stayed on high alert.

About the time it takes to burn an incense stick later, just as Li Bufan was about to risk moving forward to check, faint footsteps came from the dense forest.

He looked up warily and saw Lin Zhiyan, Nanny Wu, and Qin Shi slowly emerging.

Lin Zhiyan's expression was unchanged, her white robes still like snow. Nanny Wu's face was slightly pale, her breathing heavy, and one sleeve was torn. Qin Shi looked the worst—a trace of un wiped blood lingered at the corner of his mouth, and the front of his clothes had a torn gash, clearly from some shock.

But all three had unusually bright eyes. Lin Zhiyan's, in particular, seemed to shimmer with light, carrying a sharpness that saw through everything.

Seeing them return safely, Li Bufan let out a sigh of relief. He quickly stepped out from his hiding spot, leading the horse as he approached: "Young Miss, Nanny Wu, Coach Qin, are you all right?"

Lin Zhiyan shook her head slightly. Her gaze fell on Li Bufan, seemingly satisfied that he had stayed put. Without another word, she mounted the horse.

Nanny Wu caught her breath and said in a low voice, "That was close... Those two beasts went all out at the end. Almost caught us in the blast."

Qin Shi nodded with lingering fear, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth as he looked at Lin Zhiyan with awe. "Thanks to the Young Miss's decisive strike—Sword Qi blocked most of the impact. Otherwise, we might not have made it out intact."

Sword Qi? Li Bufan's heart jolted. He turned to Lin Zhiyan, still seated on her horse. So the Young Miss has already grown this powerful?

Lin Zhiyan's cool voice cut through their lingering dread. "Two beasts fought—one dead, one gravely wounded. The Boa Constrictor barely won, devouring part of the Brutal Bear's essence, but its own Demon Essence is heavily depleted and its foundation damaged. It's fled deep into its lair to lie low—no threat for now."

Her tone was flat, as if recounting a trivial matter, but the content made Li Bufan's heart race. Two Qi Condensation Beasts—one dead, one crippled? That outcome must have had something to do with the Young Miss and her people!

"This place is no longer safe." Lin Zhiyan turned her horse. "The source of the Beast Tide is clear. Mission complete. Return immediately."

"Yes!" the three replied in unison.

Li Bufan quickly led his horse forward. On the way back, the silence lingered, but the earlier killing tension had dissipated. Qin Shi and Nanny Wu occasionally exchanged glances, as if still replaying that breathtaking scene.

Li Bufan trudged silently behind the horse, his mind a storm. What he had seen and heard today shattered his understanding, opening a door to a higher realm of martial arts. Qi Condensation, demon beasts, Vital Energy, Sword Qi... These words echoed endlessly in his head.

For the first time, he realized so clearly: the Five Body Tempering Gates were merely the starting point of martial arts! Beyond that lay a far vaster, far more powerful world!

A hunger and drive he had never known blazed in his chest. I need to get stronger! Not just to complete Body Tempering, but to uncover the secret of drawing Qi into the body and step onto the true path of martial arts!

And all of this—perhaps the key lay right before him, in this unfathomable Young Miss.

He lifted his head, eyes fixed firmly on Lin Zhiyan's retreating figure ahead, and gripped the reins tighter.