My Path Is Not Solitary

"Is this Origin Mulberry Field number eleven, section Bing?"

In the southeast direction of Emerald Cloud Valley, by asking the gang members guarding the Origin Mulberry Fields along the way, Shen Mu finally arrived at the field assigned to him.

The Origin Mulberry Field was only about ten mu in size. Each Origin Mulberry tree planted within was thick enough for a person to wrap their arms around. Layer upon layer of palm-sized leaves overlapped, and unripe Origin Mulberry fruits hung heavy on the branches, swaying gently in the breeze.

Shen Mu stood beneath an Origin Mulberry tree, where sunlight still filtered through in faint rays, causing his entire state of mind to settle into a rare tranquility.

In his past life, after entering society, he had been trapped by reinforced concrete; the scene before him was undoubtedly a tremendous surprise.

Plucking chrysanthemums beneath the eastern fence, leisurely catching sight of the southern mountains.

These ten short characters were a dream that so many young people trapped in urban rental apartments could only hope for but never reach.

Beside the Origin Mulberry Field he was to guard stood a bamboo shed, with a patch of bare, grassless ground in front of the door.

Shen Mu pushed open the door of the bamboo shed. It occupied about twenty square meters, furnished with a bamboo bed and a table set with tea utensils.

What truly caught Shen Mu's attention was a crudely made long saber hanging on the west wall, accompanied by messages left by the gang members who had guarded this place before him.

"This saber was left by gang member Song Yong. Having guarded this Origin Mulberry Field for three years, I have successfully mastered the Army-Breaking Saber Technique and reached the fourth level of the Boiling Blood Stage. I leave this saber, hoping the successor will take good care of it..."

"Borrowing the saber of Brother Song Yong, this humble one, Qi Xian, has guarded this place for four years. I have achieved minor success in the Army-Breaking Saber Technique and reached the fourth level of the Boiling Blood Stage. Having found other opportunities, I leave this saber, hoping the successor will treat it well..."

"Ge Hanfeng, having guarded this place for five years, I have achieved great success in the Army-Breaking Saber Technique with this saber and reached the fourth level of the Boiling Blood Stage. I leave this saber and the tea set, hoping the successor will treat them well. May the Dao not be lonely..."

After reading the handwriting left on the wall by the three predecessors, Shen Mu's expression became somewhat complex.

These three short sentences were the testament to twelve years of time spent guarding this place by three people he had never met.

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he couldn't help but recall the scenes from when he moved into his dormitory after starting university in his past life, and the legacies left behind by the seniors in the dorm.

Some seniors left behind a magnet, a water card, and a note: "Use the magnet to swipe the water card; no matter how much hot water you use, it only deducts one dime."

Some seniors left behind a USB drive containing the various scandals of the dean, noting that as long as it wasn't too excessive, one could use this dirt to make him provide assistance.

There were also seniors who left behind binoculars, making the girls' dormitory two hundred meters away feel like it was right at his doorstep.

Some seniors specifically went to get keys made for the dormitory gate, so they would never have to worry about the dorm manager locking them out, no matter how late they returned...

Truly, the seniors had departed, but their legacies continued; the Dao was not lonely.

He took the long saber down from the wall, his expression turning somewhat strange.

This long saber could be described as the pinnacle of shoddy craftsmanship; to call it a saber was a stretch—it looked more like a long, rectangular block of iron.

"I suppose Senior Song Yong, when he was responsible for guarding this place, was only at the first level of the Boiling Blood Stage and didn't have the money to purchase a proper saber?"

"However, for me right now, this thing is actually a great item. It happens to be perfect for me to practice the Army-Breaking Saber Technique while simultaneously tempering my body and digesting the beast meat..."

How could Shen Mu not guess Song Yong's intention? It was clearly because he had no money at the time and just grabbed some scrap iron to hammer into the shape of a blade...

Little did he know that this saber would pass through the hands of three people and now be inherited by a fourth.

But with this iron block, it saved him the trouble of spending money to have a custom saber made for practicing the Army-Breaking Saber Technique.

"If I happen to run into them within the gang in the future, I really should treat them to a drink."

Shen Mu thought to himself.

He could empathize with the state of mind the three were in when they left, and their concern for those who would guard the place after them.

This sentiment might be insignificant, but he accepted it!

Shen Mu pushed open the window of the bamboo shed and took out the Body Tempering Formula and the Army-Breaking Saber Technique to study them carefully.

The Body Tempering Formula only covered the second to fourth levels, but for him right now, it was more than enough.

As for what came after, once he promoted to the fourth level of Body Tempering, he would be able to become a core member of the Firewood Gang and take on a position with a higher salary.

This was also the reason why the three predecessors in the bamboo shed had left after promoting to the fourth level of the Boiling Blood Stage.

The manual consisted of only a few hundred characters, and Shen Mu spent an hour successfully committing it to memory.

Next, Shen Mu took down the long saber named Moon Embroidery, stood up, walked out of the bamboo shed, and began to practice according to the instructions of the Army-Breaking Saber Technique.

The Army-Breaking Saber Technique focused on broad, sweeping movements. Each strike required Shen Mu to pour his entire strength into it, carrying an aura of indomitable courage and a willingness to face death, standing as still as a deep pool or a towering mountain, and moving like a raging tsunami.

Practicing the Army-Breaking Saber Technique was terrifyingly exhausting.

Shen Mu spent a full hour, stopping occasionally to rest and recover his strength, before he finally finished practicing all the moves. By then, his entire body was soaked in sweat.

"I truly didn't expect that even though this Army-Breaking Saber Technique is merely a simplified version of the Yellow-tier primary martial art, the Demon-Subduing Saber Art, the difficulty of practicing it is this terrifying..."

Shen Mu panted heavily; the sheer expenditure of physical energy was no less than a full day of body tempering at the training grounds.

Only now did he understand why Mao Shouzhuo had said that once one entered the first level of the Boiling Blood Stage, the previous entry-level body tempering methods would no longer be suitable.

This was because after entering the first level of the Boiling Blood Stage, his physical body, nourished by blood energy, had reached a higher level of toughness.

Ordinary body tempering methods were no longer applicable to those who had already entered the Boiling Blood Stage.

At this point, it was necessary to increase the difficulty of the tempering to keep the body in a state of high-intensity training, only then could it achieve the same rate of digestion.

At this moment, he was in the Origin Mulberry Field, and apart from the chirping of cicadas and birds, there was no other noise.

Shen Mu contentedly enjoyed the breeze brushing against his face, and during his break, he sank his consciousness into his mind to observe the Martial Dao Tree.

"Huh?"

When Shen Mu immersed his mind and witnessed the anomaly appearing on the Martial Dao Tree within his consciousness, he couldn't help but let out a surprised exclamation.

One percent of the Martial Dao Tree's second root was already shrouded in a scarlet mist.

This indicated that he had begun his progression toward the second stage of Boiling Blood; once the scarlet mist solidified the second root, he would be able to use the surging blood energy nurtured within to assault the second stage of Boiling Blood.

However, the anomaly of the Martial Dao Tree was not in its roots, but rather that the tree, which had previously consisted only of a trunk, had sprouted an illusory branch.

Four leaves grew upon the branch, with a flower bud at the tip, and at this moment, a wisp of scarlet mist was spreading across the branch.

"What is going on here?"

Shen Mu could not help but feel a sense of confusion.

The phenomenon of the Martial Dao Tree growing a branch, coupled with the presence of the scarlet mist upon it, clearly indicated that this was a second function manifested by the Martial Dao Tree.

"Could it be?"

Shen Mu recalled himself practicing the Army-Breaking Saber Technique just moments ago; if his guess was correct, that was what had caused the anomaly to appear on the Martial Dao Tree.

"I understand now. The branches of the Martial Dao Tree correspond to the changes in my cultivation of martial techniques."

"As long as I continue to practice the Army-Breaking Saber Technique, the branches of the Martial Dao Tree will also be filled with the scarlet mist. When the branch is completely solidified, does it represent the level of proficiency I have attained in my martial technique?"

"I just don't know what kind of changes will occur when the scarlet mist spreads to the first leaf."

"But now that I am responsible for guarding the Origin Mulberry Field, I have plenty of time to practice the Army-Breaking Saber Technique. I expect it won't be long before I realize what happens once the branches of the Martial Dao Tree are fully solidified."

Shen Mu withdrew his focus and stood up, once again beginning his practice of the Army-Breaking Saber Technique.