Training on the Journey

The night passed without incident. The next morning, Yin Congyang got ready, trained his Origin Energy and Spiritual Force, then continued hunting monsters in the county. Sometimes he practiced his axe technique, sometimes he used flying knives to train in the methods of a Mental Master Controller, and sometimes he practiced the skills of an Illusionist...

After spending several days training in County 0316, Yin Congyang returned to the Supply Base. He sold the monster materials he had collected, restocked on some wilderness survival essentials, and bought a map for the journey to the Southeast Military Region. Traveling from Southwest Base City to the Southeast Military Region would inevitably take him through Jiangnan Base City.

After thinking it over, Yin Congyang decided to set out from Southwest Base City and travel overland to Jiangnan Base City. Of course, the map could only serve as a reference and point him in roughly the right direction. After all, both the highways and ordinary roads had long since fallen into disrepair.

There were trains, but since he had chosen to train in the wilderness, he might as well treat the journey to Jiangnan Base City as a period of cultivation and see what he could accomplish by the time he arrived!

Following the map, he headed east...

Traveling on foot and training as he went, he slowly made his way to the area of the former Zhangjiajie City a month and a half later.

Over the past month and a half, Yin Congyang had encountered several life-or-death crises, but he had always managed to escape with his Spiritual Force. The most dangerous time was when he ran into a large flock of Red-Bellied Cloud Swallows. The mutated swallows were several times larger than ordinary ones, and the flock was led by an Advanced Beast General. Yin Congyang hadn't dared use his Spiritual Force to fly. He could only use it to propel himself forward as he ran for his life. In the end, he found a waterfall and hid in the pool beneath it for half a day, finally managing to outlast the flock.

After a month and a half of training, Yin Congyang's physical fitness had reached the peak of Intermediate War General Level. His punches now packed more than 30,000 kilograms of force, while the standard for Advanced War General Level was roughly 32,000 to 64,000 kilograms.

His Spiritual Force had also reached the threshold of Advanced War General Level. If he encountered that flock of Red-Bellied Cloud Swallows now, a single Spiritual Impact would probably kill a huge number of them. Back then, he hadn't dared stop to use the methods of an Illusionist. If he paused for even a second, they would catch up, and in no time they would peck him down to a pile of bones. While running, he had to focus on choosing his escape route and control his flying knives to kill any monsters that got too close. He simply didn't have the spare attention to use illusions!

His axe technique and movement technique, however, had improved rapidly. The many battles he'd fought during this period ranged from easy victories to evenly matched fights to desperate escapes. Both techniques had broken through Perfect Level and were just barely entering Conception Level.

As his physical fitness had improved by leaps and bounds, the power of the Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes had grown greater and greater. Yin Congyang had painstakingly broken down the force application techniques contained in the axe style, examining, pondering, and practicing them over and over. Through this training, he had raised his force amplification to five times, allowing him to unleash 150,000 kilograms of force in a full-power strike. And the more he practiced the axe technique, the more he felt that the Thirty-Six Heaven-Opening Axes were endlessly profound, as if they were explaining some ultimate truth!

Even more gratifying to Yin Congyang was that the faint fluctuations in his Dantian seemed to grow stronger as his physical fitness improved. He could vaguely sense that the increase was directly proportional to his physical improvement, which made his training faster and faster.

A month later, beside Enshi Grand Canyon.

A troop of Long-Armed Demon Apes surrounded a young man across the mountainside. Suddenly, the young man kicked off the ground and leaped more than ten meters into the air. With nothing beneath his feet, he used his Spiritual Force to condense the air into a brick-like platform, as if he had gained another step to stand on. He pushed off and shot another seven or eight meters upward, then placed the shield on his back beneath his feet. Laughing heartily, he flew off into the distance...

Half a month later, at Tianmen Mountain.

A young man wielding an axe chased a giant bear, seven or eight meters tall...

A few hours later, he ate bear gall and roasted bear paws...

Two months later, at the foot of Mount Huang.

The axe-wielding young man faced off against a Intermediate Lord Level Golden Wind Demon Leopard. Two Elementary Lord-level Green Scale Wolves stood nearby, along with dozens of Advanced Beast General-level monsters and even more Intermediate Beast General-level ones. They surrounded him, fear in their eyes, but not one dared approach. The leopard's fur and entrails littered the ground, and its blood had splashed across an area more than a hundred meters wide...

Yangzhou City, one of the Eight Satellite Cities of Jiangnan Base City.

A young man in a combat uniform with a huge backpack on his shoulders walked down the streets of Yangzhou City. His uniform was badly damaged and ragged, but his expression remained calm and his eyes clear.

This young man was, of course, Yin Congyang, who had spent more than half a year walking from Southwest Base City to Jiangnan Base City.

"I've finally made it back to human society. I've barely tasted anything decent for months. I've got to find somewhere and have a huge meal as soon as I can." Yin Congyang's expression remained calm, but inside he could hardly wait. "Good thing I brought enough seasoning before I set out. Otherwise..."

His nose suddenly twitched. He looked down at his clothes and gave a wry smile. "Forget it. I'd better find somewhere to stay, take a shower, and change first. Otherwise, the servers might not even let me in!"

An hour later, Yin Congyang sat in a private room at Chaotian Residence, his mouth greasy as he gnawed on a pork knuckle, while his other hand clutched a chicken leg...

After eating his fill, Yin Congyang headed to the Limit Dojo with his backpack on his shoulders. It held the gains he'd accumulated over the past half-year—far more than could fit in a single backpack, in fact. But he'd only brought one, so he had picked and chosen, keeping only monster materials from Intermediate Lord Level or higher that didn't take up too much space.

By now, both Yin Congyang's physical abilities and Spiritual Force had reached the peak of Intermediate War God Level. In another ten days or half a month, he should be able to break through to High-level War God. His axe and movement techniques had both reached the peak of Conception Level, and he could unleash eight times his normal force. Even high-level Lord monsters would fall after just a few casual swings of his axe!

Half a day later, at the Limit Dojo headquarters in Jiangnan Base City's main district, Yin Congyang walked through the imposing entrance and headed straight for the front desk. He said to the receptionist, "I'd like to sell a batch of materials, possibly worth more than ten billion. Could you contact someone from procurement for me?"

The receptionist was a pretty young woman. When she heard Yin Congyang, she widened her eyes and took a closer look at him and the backpack behind him, then gave him a surprised smile. "Of course, sir. Thank you for choosing the Limit Dojo. I'll contact them right away. Please wait a moment..."

She picked up the red phone at the front desk and dialed a number. "A gentleman wants to sell materials worth more than ten billion... Yes, he's right here at the front desk... All right, I'll take him up right away..."

After hanging up, she looked up at Yin Congyang with a bright smile. "Sir, our manager happens to be available. I'll take you to the thirtieth floor. Please follow me..."

I haven't gotten a deal this big in over half a year. At last, I've landed a big one. The bonus should be enough to buy Mom better medicine this time...

Yin Congyang followed the young woman onto the elevator and up to the thirtieth floor. As soon as they stepped out, a man in his thirties greeted them with a warm smile. "Sir, I'm Li Gengju, the procurement department manager. I'll be assisting you."

He waved the receptionist away, signaling that he would take over. Then he led Yin Congyang into a spacious office. As he went to prepare tea, he asked with a smile, "May I ask your surname, sir?"

"My surname is Yin." Yin Congyang spoke calmly. "Manager Li, there's no need to be so polite. Let's take a look at my goods first."

"Of course, of course." Li Gengju readily agreed. "Mr. Yin, please take out the items so I can inspect them..."

Yin Congyang opened his backpack and took out the monster materials one by one.

"This... Is this the hide of a Golden Wind Demon Leopard? And these are Blazing Tiger claws? They're all Lord-level..." Excited, he turned and took out a special testing device, then asked Yin Congyang, "Mr. Yin, may I inspect them?"

Yin Congyang nodded and raised a hand slightly, giving him permission to inspect whatever he liked.

Li Gengju took a deep breath to steady himself, then began testing the items one by one. The more he tested, the more astonished he became. Nearly all the materials came from high-level Lord monsters. The only exception was a wing from a Cloud-Soaring Phoenix, which came from an intermediate Lord-level monster. Cloud-Soaring Phoenixes were flying monsters and extremely difficult to kill, so their price was much higher than that of ordinary intermediate Lord-level monsters. The rest all came from high-level Lord monsters.

After inspecting all the materials, Li Gengju beamed at Yin Congyang. "Mr. Yin, the inspection is complete. We'll take all these materials. The total comes to six hundred billion. Does that sound acceptable?"

Yin Congyang glanced at him calmly. From Li Gengju's mental fluctuations, he could tell the offer wasn't particularly low; it was basically the going rate. But over the past six months, monster materials had been rising in price because of the Golden Horned Behemoth incident, which had killed many Planetary Level fighters and War Gods. Still, he didn't intend to point that out, because he had another goal.

"Let's set aside whether the price is high or low for now. I have a favor to ask, Manager Li. If you can help me with it, I'll accept your offer!"

"I wonder what you need my help with?" Li Gengju asked cautiously. The young man in front of him was at least a High-level War God, and he had no idea what kind of help he could offer.

"I've been wandering around the Wilderness Zone for more than half a year, and I'm tired. I'd like to settle down in Jiangnan Base City for a while, but I don't know the place. So I'd like you to help me buy a house." Yin Congyang smiled faintly at Li Gengju. "I once had a teacher who lived in Bright Moon Residential District in Yangzhou City. I'd like you to help me buy a villa there..."

"Ah... So that's what it is." Li Gengju relaxed and smiled. "I can't promise much, but I can certainly arrange for you to buy a villa in Jiangnan Base City. There are some with even nicer surroundings in the main district. What do you think, Mr. Yin..."

"No. I like peace and quiet, and the main district is too crowded."

"But..." Li Gengju looked troubled. "Only warriors from the Limit Dojo can live in Bright Moon Residential District... And the villas aren't allowed to be sold..."

He lowered his voice. "Although the rules aren't as strict as they used to be, since the Dojo Master—uh, can't manage the dojo for the time being, this affects so many warriors in the residential district. I can't just..."

"Don't worry," Yin Congyang cut him off. "I'm a warrior from the Limit Dojo too!"

He took out his warrior certificate. "Here's my proof. I previously joined the Limit Dojo in Southwest Base City."

"Ah, I see. Then there's no problem. Please wait a moment, Mr. Yin. I'll make a few calls." As he spoke, he took out his phone and walked off to one side to start calling.

Ten minutes later, Li Gengju returned with a delighted look and said to Yin Congyang, "Mr. Yin, I've got it arranged. There happens to be a vacant villa in Bright Moon Residential District in Yangzhou right now. It's a detached house, which suits your preference for peace and quiet. But since you weren't previously a warrior from Jiangnan Base City, you'll need to pay an additional fee. What do you think..."

Yin Congyang smiled faintly and waved a hand. "That's fine. Money's no problem. Just deduct it from the payment for the materials. When can we take care of the paperwork?"

"Mr. Yin, it's already a little late today. You can stay in the main district tonight and take care of the paperwork tomorrow. I guarantee we can finish it in a day, and you'll be able to move in tomorrow evening."

Yin Congyang nodded, gave him his bank account number, and watched as Li Gengju transferred the money into his account. Then he left his contact information and headed out.

Li Gengju saw Yin Congyang out of the building before returning inside.

The next morning, Li Gengju came to pick Yin Congyang up, and they headed straight to Yangzhou City. It took only half a day to complete all the paperwork, and Yin Congyang couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Li Gengju drove Yin Congyang right to the entrance of Bright Moon Residential District. Along the way, he repeatedly urged him to come to him whenever he had materials to sell in the future. Yin Congyang merely nodded in response.

Standing at the gate of Bright Moon Residential District, Yin Congyang looked up at the familiar Warrior Residential Area that had left such a deep impression on him. He took a deep breath and stepped inside.

At the suggestion of two readers, I changed the place where the materials were sold from HR to the Limit Dojo. Thanks to both of them. Please feel free to share any comments or suggestions. Thank you!