[Swordsman]

Perhaps it was because Wu Dao's presence was simply too overwhelming.

The service at Fragrant Pavilion was remarkably fast; within the time it took to steep a pot of tea, several meat dishes were served to the table.

Already famished, Wu Dao had no intention of observing table manners. He locked his gaze on a plate of white-cut chicken and grabbed it with his bare hands.

Crunch, crunch~

Opening his blood-red maw, he devoured the meat bones and all. His two rows of Triangular Shark Teeth rhythmically tore and ground, filling the main hall with the bone-chilling sound of splintering skeletons.

It was as if a primeval beast were feeding.

Or perhaps a mountain demon wearing human skin had descended into the mortal realm.

In particular, Wu Dao's sharp, metallic-black shark teeth were clearly not those of a human.

This sight terrified many of the other patrons, who turned pale and settled their bills in haste, fearing that if Wu Dao grew too enthusiastic while eating, he might tear them apart as well.

Heh...

Seeing this, Wu Dao felt nothing but contempt; he took no shame in it, but rather pride.

They were merely low-level creatures obsessed with the aesthetics of skin and flesh—short-sighted and narrow-minded, utterly incapable of understanding the wondrous power of human evolution and transcendence.

Crunch, crunch~

The sound of chewing, like that of a man-eating Evil Ghost, continued unabated.

Wu Dao remained completely unaffected, gorging himself voraciously. His massive mouth acted like a meat grinder, pulverizing plate after plate of food so quickly that the kitchen could hardly keep up.

Burp~

Finally, after consuming over twenty plates of meat—enough to satiate seven or eight grown men—he felt the warmth of the nutrients surging from his stomach to his limbs and let out a satisfied belch.

"Waiter, is the room ready?"

Picking bits of meat from his teeth with nails sharp as iron hooks, Wu Dao called out casually.

The gaping hole in his right arm was hindering his movements, and now that his belly was full of nutrients, he had enough fuel to circulate his energy and mend the wound.

But he needed a quiet place; he could not expose the Stealing Heavenly Secrets Breathing Technique in public.

"It's all cleaned up, sir! I'll lead you there right away."

The fat shopkeeper, trembling all over and wiping cold sweat from his forehead, hurried over to personally lead Wu Dao upstairs, not daring to mention a word about the bill.

"The taste is decent. Have another table prepared and sent to my room later."

Wu Dao flicked his teeth, offering praise without hesitation, and tossed out a silver ingot the size of an infant's fist as he gave his instructions.

"Oh my, as long as you're satisfied, sir! I'll go order the kitchen to prepare it immediately."

The fat shopkeeper quickly caught the ingot, his face beaming with joy. For a moment, Wu Dao didn't seem so terrifying anymore—he seemed even dearer than his own father.

As for whether Wu Dao could actually eat another table of food, that was not his concern.

As long as the money was good, even if the guest threw all the kitchen's ingredients into the trash, he wouldn't even frown.

Creak~

Just as the two reached the door of the prepared room, the black-lacquered door next to it happened to open.

Wu Dao glanced over instinctively.

A clean-shaven face, eyes like polished lacquer, dressed in an elegant green robe with a long sword hanging at his waist—he was a handsome, jade-like young sword master.

But this was only the surface.

Wu Dao could clearly sense that hidden within the man's gentle and refined Vitality and Spirit was an imperceptible, razor-sharp aura of slaughter.

Divine Strength Realm!

And a very peculiar one at that—the level of threat he posed was at least on par with Meng Qingshuang, if not greater.

A sword cultivator?

Wu Dao lowered his gaze, calmly sizing up the thin sword in a black scabbard worn by the young man in green.

To carry a sharp weapon is to increase one's lethality.

Especially for an extraordinary human who specialized in the way of weaponry.

This seemingly frail youth was undoubtedly a martial artist who specialized in Sword Dao, and his attainments were not low.

Every movement revealed a subtle, restrained air of a grandmaster. Clearly, his Sword Dao had reached the level of a Hundred Changes Master; within the same realm, he would be virtually unrivaled in combat!

This was no exaggeration; it was a simple truth.

When physical fitness levels were similar, if a fist-fighter tried to take on someone specializing in weapons, unless they had a body of steel, they would be sliced to ribbons in minutes.

Creak~

As Wu Dao pondered, the shopkeeper opened the door.

Seeing the frail youth frown slightly in displeasure, Wu Dao grinned, retracted his gaze, and stepped into the room, having already formed a deep impression of the man in his mind.

The realm of Hundred Changes Master.

An ordinary person would need fifty or sixty years of immersive training in a single craft to possibly achieve it.

But that young man, looking at most to be in his twenties, had already attained Hundred Changes. His aptitude and comprehension could be imagined; calling him a genius in this remote little place was by no means an exaggeration.

Such a character was basically never a fool, and certainly would not act without a purpose.

He must have long since known what the anomaly within Canyun Mountain was and confirmed that it held great benefits for him, which was why he remained here without leaving.

Inside the classical and elegant room.

It holds a great attraction even for the Divine Strength Realm...

Wu Dao sat at the table, his eagle-claw-like fingertips tapping on the surface. His thoughts rose and fell as he licked his lips; his appetite for the anomaly within Canyun Mountain rose to another level.

However.

Since a formidable competitor had appeared, he could not ignore it.

"What is the background of the swordsman in the room next door? Do you know?"

Wu Dao did not beat around the bush; he looked up and asked the fat innkeeper who was just about to leave.

To know yourself and your enemy is to win every battle.

Although his strength currently stood at the peak of the Foundation Establishment Realm, he did not possess an arrogant heart, nor did he look down upon or underestimate any opponent—especially a genius who had reached Hundred Changes in Sword Dao at such a young age.

"Uh... you don't know, sir?"

The fat innkeeper's expression was one of surprise, as if the green-robed swordsman was very famous in this area. He whispered an explanation:

"That young master is named Yun Tianliu, and he is a disciple of Yang Wufeng, the publicly recognized leader of Sword Dao in the prefecture.

Despite being only in his twenties, he has already reached the peak of the Divine Strength Realm. His swordsmanship is so refined it rivals that of famous masters. He often acts with chivalry and saves people from dire straits; both in terms of virtue and martial power, he is one of the leaders of the younger generation at Fangcun Sword Hall.

Furthermore, he possesses the Huangting Sword Embryo and is expected to reach the Rebirth Realm before the age of twenty-five, truly stepping onto the path of the extraordinary.

However, I heard that he encountered a Demon Evil a few years ago and damaged his foundation, so he has always been sickly, but his strength remains not to be underestimated. He has basically no rivals within the Divine Strength Realm."

"Demon Evil?"

Wu Dao's expression shifted slightly as he asked a question that had been on his mind: "Within Guangqing Prefecture, are there many strange occurrences like the one in Canyun Mountain, or rather, things of a demonic or ghostly nature?"

Ever since he first encountered a supernatural entity, activated his Attribute Panel, and tasted the benefits, he had been very attentive to anomalies. But limited by an information gap, his knowledge of the strange beings in this world was far too limited.

He knew basically nothing about their strength or their numbers.

"This little one is not sure."

The fat innkeeper said with some apprehension: "However, before Da Li fell into chaos, I never heard of these bizarre things. Perhaps it really echoes that old saying: chaotic times bring forth many demons and evils."

"I see. Alright, you go about your business."

Wu Dao felt a slight sense of regret in his heart and waved his hand to let the fat innkeeper leave.

Creak~

The room door was tightly shut, and the room fell silent.

It seems that in the future, I must have more contact with people from the extraordinary side.

Wu Dao gazed at the closed door, his eyes flickering as he digested the information he had just gained.

Entities of demons, evils, and oddities.

They are mostly dark and sinister things that feed on human flesh, blood, and souls.

An ordinary person dies upon contact, so it is normal not to know about them. Only extraordinary cultivators can face them directly, resist and control them, and leave behind information and classics for the world.

If he wants to rapidly improve his strength using anomalous food in the future, he will inevitably have to deal more with forces on the extraordinary side.

A lone wolf, a headless fly.

There are too many restrictions!

But these are matters for the future; right now, the anomaly within Canyun Mountain is the top priority.

Yun Tianliu will not be the only case.

Presumably, there are already quite a few experts hiding in Panshui Town who have come to dig for gold.

These are all potential competitors!

He must return to his peak state as soon as possible and muster his full spirit to deal with them.

Without absolute certainty, Wu Dao would never underestimate or look down on anyone.

Caution is the parent of safety; carelessness sinks the thousand-chariot nation!

He only has one life, and if he capsizes in a gutter, he cannot guarantee he will have another chance to start over!

Hoo~

Wu Dao sat upright on the bed, exhaled a light breath, and adjusted his state. His body quickly turned red and hot as he entered the God-Ghost Heaven state.

God-Ghost Heaven Secret Technique.

Not only can it explosively increase combat power for a short time, but if controlled properly, it is also a divine technique for healing and recovery.

During the period in his past life before he had fully matured, it was the God-Ghost Heaven Secret Technique that helped Wu Dao survive countless brutal assassinations by Old Humanity.

As long as it was not a missing limb.

Or an injury involving the direct loss of an organ, it could be rapidly healed with the God-Ghost Heaven.

Of course.

This was only the case because Wu Dao's Potential Liberation progress was insufficient.

If he were to reach the Overlord Realm at 85% Potential Liberation, every tiny tissue would possess complete intelligence and immense vitality, making the regeneration of severed limbs an effortless feat.

Hum~

After a few breaths.

Wu Dao's bones, muscles, internal organs... every internal and external part of his body began to vibrate. The food in his stomach decomposed rapidly, transforming into streams of Myriad Healing Fluid that surged outward.

Wu Dao focused his mind, directing the Myriad Healing Fluid toward the hole in his right arm. Visible to the naked eye, blood surged, granulation tissue sprouted, and tendons and skin grew back.

In a dozen seconds.

The hole in his right arm was completely filled. Muscles regenerated and skin became as smooth as jade, showing no signs of injury whatsoever.

At the same time.

The nutrients from the meat and vegetables he had just consumed—enough to satiate seven or eight people—were completely digested, leaving his stomach empty once again.

"The energy contained in ordinary food is ultimately too low."

Wu Dao's state returned to normal. He opened his eyes, a sharp light flashing within them. Feeling the hunger radiating from his stomach, he couldn't help but shake his head.

Beast King Limit Realm.

The best food is Medicinal Meal cooked with medicinal herbs.

Only in this way can it provide sufficient nutrients to transform into Myriad Healing Fluid, maintain physical strength, break shackles, and enter the next realm.

But given the current limited conditions.

He did not dwell on it too much. Although ordinary food was a bit inferior, as long as he ate and processed enough of it, the nutrition would barely suffice.

Knock, knock~

A dozen minutes later, the door was knocked, and a faint, lingering aroma of meat drifted into the room.

"Come in."

Wu Dao, who had been recuperating his spirit on the couch, let out a soft breath and opened his eyes, saliva pooling in his mouth.

Crunch, crunch~

Before long, the hair-raising sound of bones and meat being crushed and chewed echoed in the room, savage and violent, as if from a demon's den.

"Another trouble..."

In the room next door, the green-clad, jade-faced Yun Tianliu sat upright on his couch, his long sword across his knees. As he meditated, he couldn't help but open his eyes and frown upon hearing the jarring chewing sounds coming from just a wall away.

Wu Dao could see that he was not simple.

How could Yun Tianliu lack that kind of discernment?

During their brief meeting, the impression Wu Dao left on him far exceeded any other Divine Strength Realm expert he had dealt with in the past.

Burning like a furnace, fierce as a tyrannosaurus!

That nine-foot-tall, unusually savage frame, once the terrifying, restrained power within it erupted, would absolutely transform into a prehistoric beast in an instant.

But if it were only brute strength, Yun Tianliu would not be particularly wary. If they were to fight to the death, he would have a seventy percent chance of ending the battle quickly.

What truly made him wary.

Were Wu Dao's two arms and fists, which were exceptionally thick, calloused, and shaped like whale waists and whale heads.

Martial arts of fists and feet.

Anyone who could cultivate to the point of physical transformation was a master who had refined a technique to their very bones, reaching the peak of perfection!

'A Fist Dao Grandmaster?'

However, what was that inexplicable sense of familiarity about?

Yun Tianliu's eyes narrowed slightly, his thoughts surging and undulating. As memories flooded his mind, the faces of a group of mighty pugilists appeared.

The same Fist Dao Vitality and Spirit.

The same whale-waist arms and whale-head fists.

"Giant Whale Sect..."

He uttered the three words faintly.

Yun Tianliu had a guess about Wu Dao's origins, though whether it was accurate remained to be verified.

After all.

The once-thriving Giant Whale Sect in Guangqing Prefecture had fallen apart decades ago, and it was quite normal for its legacy to be scattered elsewhere.

"However, no matter who it is, if you stand in the way of my path to breaking the cocoon, then I can only offer my apologies..."

Clang!

The blade was unsheathed.

A hint of coldness appeared on the gentle, jade-like face of Yun Tianliu.

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