Inside the cave, time seemed to slip away amid the howling of fists and feet and the surging of blood and qi. The sun rose and the moon fell; cold wind blew through the cracks at the cave entrance, sometimes letting out a piercing wail, sometimes a low moan, yet it could not affect Li Bufan in the slightest as he immersed himself in cultivation.
He was completely absorbed in the thrill of his rapidly rising strength, never knowing fatigue. The abundant vital essence brought by the Silver-Crowned Snow Fox meat was like the finest fuel, supporting his near-mad training as he squeezed every last drop of energy from himself.
When hungry, he mechanically gnawed a few bites of rock-hard frozen rations along with the mountain boar meat he had hunted earlier—still somewhat dry, tough, gamey, and rank even after roasting, yet quite delicious. He swallowed it all in great gulps, only to replenish his strength as quickly as possible and sustain his stamina and blood and qi.
When thirsty, he tilted back his head and gulped down a few mouthfuls of water, repeatedly frozen and thawed as the campfire died out, icy enough to pierce the bones.
Once the water ran out, he simply grabbed clean snow from the cave entrance and stuffed it into his waterskin. Then he placed it beside the still-warm ashes of the fire, or simply tucked it against his chest and slowly melted it with his body heat.
Everything was simplified. Everything was for cultivation. The quality of his life had been compressed to its bare minimum.
Every day, without fail, he cut off about a pound of precious Silver-Crowned Snow Fox meat. He skewered the tender, finely textured chunks, faintly pink between their grain, onto sharpened branches he had picked up, then carefully roasted them over the fire. Watching the meat slowly turn golden as fat dripped into the flames with sizzling sounds and released that peculiar fragrance, a blend of savory meat and delicate sweetness, became the sole enjoyment and anticipation amid his tedious cultivation.
Each time he ate those tender, springy slices of meat with their faint lingering sweetness, a vast yet gentle stream of vital energy rapidly dissolved in his stomach. Like the finest warm current, it swiftly seeped into his limbs and bones, nourishing his skin membrane and bringing a slight numb itch and a sensation of strengthening. Every punch he threw and every step he took felt more powerful and precise, while his control over his strength became fine as a hair.
The [Heaven Rewards Diligence] fate mark operated at all times like an incomparably efficient furnace, absorbing, transforming, and settling every scrap of energy provided by the Silver-Crowned Snow Fox meat and every subtle realization born of practice without wasting a trace, turning them into his tangible cultivation.
Mighty Ox Fist, the martial skill he had cultivated the longest and whose foundation ran deepest, saw its proficiency soar wildly at an unprecedented pace under such mad, cost-free, no-holds-barred training and the constant nourishment of top-grade beast meat! The speed of his progress startled even him.
"Ha!"
"Hmph!"
The wind from his fists surged through the relatively cramped cave, striking the stone walls with dull echoes. Faintly, it even seemed to carry the barely audible bellow of a mighty ox.
His fist technique became increasingly heavy, fierce, and domineering, yet his moves grew smoother and more rounded. The minute sluggishness between transitions and the points where blood and qi had once been imperceptibly wasted were gradually ground away and remedied by this high-intensity tempering and abundant energy. His blood and qi thundered through his body with the momentum of his fists, repeatedly tempering and compressing the skin membrane all over him, driving its toughness, strength, and density toward an inhuman extreme.
Mighty Ox Fist proficiency +35... +48... +52... +61...
Every day, when he finished cultivating and paused briefly to inspect his gains, he saw that proficiency leap upward at a jaw-dropping rate. In a single day, it could increase by several hundred points! If such an appalling rate of progress were spread abroad, it would be enough to make countless so-called geniuses' jaws hit the floor and draw endless scrutiny and trouble.
As the precious Silver-Crowned Snow Fox meat in his leather bag dwindled day by day, Li Bufan could clearly feel that his cultivation of Mighty Ox Fist was gradually reaching an unprecedented state of perfection. Every stance and every move seemed carved into his bones, becoming instinct. At a single thought, the fist technique unfolded; his blood and qi circulated seamlessly, already reaching the theoretical utmost of this basic fist art. He could no longer sense any room for improvement.
Finally, after swallowing the last fragrant piece of roasted Silver-Crowned Snow Fox meat and feeling that final stream of pure energy merge into his limbs and bones, Li Bufan was suddenly enlightened. He felt more complete than ever before. Taking a deep breath, he slowly assumed the opening stance of Mighty Ox Fist in the center of the cave.
This time, he did not deliberately circulate his blood and qi or summon his strength. His heart followed his intent, and he naturally began to perform the technique. His fists shot forth like a Mighty Ox Charge, immense in force and weight yet seeming effortless; his steps landed like a giant ox plowing the earth, steady as a mountain yet nimble and ever-changing. In his hands, an utterly basic fist technique displayed a unique flavor—smooth and complete, its strength hidden rather than exposed, contained within, yet carrying an overwhelming, irresistible heaviness capable of shattering anything.
When the final move, Mighty Ox Horn Strike, suddenly blasted forth, his fist stopped in midair without touching the cave wall before him. Yet an incomparably condensed, transparent fist wind, nearly invisible to the naked eye, struck the hard stone wall from afar with a soft puff, leaving behind a shallow but distinct dent in the shape of a fist!
At the same time, the blood and qi within Li Bufan, long boiled to its utmost limit, erupted with a thunderous roar. Like a volcano that had accumulated power for ages, like a river bursting through its dikes, it surged and rushed through him with even greater fury!
The skin membrane across his entire body emitted a faint yet dense buzzing tremor, as though countless oxhide war drums tempered through a thousand hammerings were trembling at once, proclaiming its final transformation! The layer of "membrane" beneath his skin became incomparably tough and full of elasticity; it could likely withstand ordinary blades and swords to some extent.
Mighty Ox Fist, Perfect (∞/∞)!
As naturally as water flowed into a channel! This widely practiced basic fist technique had actually been cultivated by him, through such madness, to an ultimate state of perfection never achieved before!
What delighted him even more was that at the instant Mighty Ox Fist broke through to perfection, that vast blood and qi immediately fed back into his body. Combined with his long-term accumulation of near-limit tempering of his skin membrane, quantitative change finally triggered qualitative change, reaching a critical point!
Boom!
A far more formidable aura than before burst from his body. Both the quantity and quality of his blood and qi rose by another enormous step, becoming purer and more abundant! The glow of his skin membrane withdrew inward, revealing a healthy bronze luster, while its toughness reached an entirely new level! Along with it came comprehensive improvements in strength, speed, and neural reaction speed. Even his five senses seemed to grow somewhat sharper.
Realm breakthrough: Skin Tempering (Perfect)!
"Hah—!" Feeling the surging, seemingly inexhaustible strength within him, Li Bufan could not help releasing a long howl. His voice rolled through the cave, making even the dying embers of the campfire flicker uncertainly and shaking loose bits of dust from the stone walls. Perfection of the Skin Tempering Realm! This meant he had laid an incomparably solid and deep foundation at the beginning of the martial path, far surpassing his peers. He now possessed the firm qualifications to challenge the next stage, [Muscle Tempering]!
After the wild joy and excitement, he quickly calmed down. The martial path was like rowing upstream—if one did not advance, one fell back. Since his fist technique had reached perfection, he immediately devoted more energy to practicing the footwork of Spirit Monkey Three Leaps.
The space inside the cave was ultimately too narrow for him to fully unleash it or make long leaps and rapid dashes, but he still moved as much as possible within that limited space—turning, shifting, sidestepping, and making short bursts forward—carefully experiencing the subtle changes in balance and the techniques of instant exertion under all kinds of complex conditions.
Though restricted by the environment, his improvement was nowhere near as terrifying as it had been with Mighty Ox Fist. Yet with the powerful aid of the [Heaven Rewards Diligence] fate mark, together with the greater bodily control, explosive power, and sense of balance brought by Perfection of Skin Refining, his proficiency still increased steadily and firmly. Every practice session brought fresh, subtle insights.
Spirit Monkey Three Leaps, Proficient (670/1000)
However, several consecutive days of almost sleepless, high-intensity cultivation had inflicted immense consumption on his body. His rations had long since been completely exhausted, and the boar meat that had once seemed plentiful had been devoured by his astonishing appetite until only some difficult-to-handle scraps remained. As for the several pounds of priceless Silver-Crowned Snow Fox meat, they had already become the precious provisions that enabled his breakthrough.
Li Bufan looked at the empty, deflated leather bag and pack, then felt the clear and intense hunger rising in his stomach once more. He smiled helplessly. Bitter cultivation in the cave was certainly safe and allowed rapid progress, but it was ultimately like building a cart behind closed doors, lacking the test of actual combat. More importantly, without sufficient supplies of meat—especially high-quality meat—continuing such intense training would only become less and less efficient. He might even damage his foundation through a lack of energy, gaining less than he lost.
"It's time to head out again." He clenched his fist hard, his knuckles crackling. He felt the vast strength granted by Perfection of the Skin Tempering Realm, as well as the powerful confidence born from the perfect control over his own strength after Mighty Ox Fist reached perfection.
Compared to when he had pursued the Silver-Crowned Snow Fox several days earlier, he was now more than a notch faster. He had a strong premonition that if he encountered another Silver-Crowned Snow Fox like that one, there would be no need for a prolonged chase. Under the same conditions, half the time it took to drink a cup of tea would be enough to take it down!
He carefully inspected his equipment. Two Armor-Piercing Arrows had been crushed by falling rocks while hunting the mountain boar, and three arrowheads had worn down. The remaining fifteen, however, still gleamed with cold light. The bowstring of the Hardwood Longbow was taut, brimming with strength. He tucked the hunting knife at his waist, packed everything up, tidied the traces of life left in the cave, and thoroughly buried the ashes of the campfire, leaving behind no hidden danger of open flames.
Once again, he forcefully pushed aside the stone blocking the cave entrance. Bright yet cold daylight instantly poured in, making him narrow his eyes slightly. It seemed a fresh snowfall had just fallen outside. The world was wrapped in silver, immaculate and pure, while sharp, refreshing air flooded into his lungs, carrying the unique chill of ice and snow.
Li Bufan took a deep breath of the icy air. His eyes shone with sharpness, confidence, and anticipation. The hunt had begun again. This time, only one Snow Fox remained between him and his goal. After entering the mountains for only a few days, he would complete the mission and be able to cultivate with even fewer restraints.
Within these vast and perilous snow mountains, there were surely stronger ferocious beasts and more precious resources still hidden away, waiting for him to discover and challenge them.
His figure flashed, and like a nimble, agile spirit monkey, he silently vanished into the boundless snowy forest. His steps were lighter and steadier than before, each filled with an agile grace. The evenly spaced footprints he left in the snow were soon faintly erased by powdery snow stirred up by the wind.
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