Long-Abundance Mountain.
Outside a hidden cave.
A figure suddenly flashed past, lightly stepping on the shrubs as he leaped into the air.
He climbed upward along the crisscrossing branches.
At last, he stood atop a tree, gazing down below.
Heavy snow blanketed everything. The whole world was a vast expanse of white.
"I've finally mastered the Flying Swallow Step!"
Lu Li looked at the panel and murmured, the corners of his mouth curling into a smile.
[Martial Arts: Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist (Tendon-Refining Realm 400/900), practiced once a day, takes seventy years to master. Flying Swallow Step (Proficient 0/100), practiced once a day, takes ten years to master.]
Ten days had passed, and Lu Li's Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist and Flying Swallow Step had advanced side by side.
During that time, he had brought the Flying Swallow Step to the proficient level.
He had learned that proficiency was divided into four stages.
Beginner, proficient, advanced, and perfect.
His display just now had been the proficient stage of the Flying Swallow Step.
In a mere few breaths, his body had grown light as if he had become a bird, and he had leaped effortlessly to the top of the tree.
Lightness skills were the best choice for covering ground, pursuing enemies, and escaping.
With a lightness skill, Lu Li's combat strength had risen by another large margin!
And that wasn't all.
The first time Lu Li formally practiced the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist, he had taken a Fire God Pill.
Taking it had directly raised his Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist proficiency by a hundred points!
It had left Lu Li deeply shaken.
Anyone who knew the martial path understood that the further one advanced, the harder it became.
That was why the benefits he gained from those precious medicines had grown weaker and weaker.
But the Fire God Pill's effects had been fierce. Aside from the boost from his own talent, it had provided at least sixty points!
Lu Li's strength had surged again, though he still hadn't broken through to the Organ-Refining Realm.
Even so, Lu Li felt that after a drawn-out fight, he could probably defeat even an ordinary Organ-Refining Realm opponent!
Lu Li took a deep breath, searched the area, and found a boulder as tall as two men. He punched it.
At once, tremendous force erupted, carrying the strength of four thousand five hundred catties and pouring into the boulder.
Lu Li's punch blasted a hole straight through it, his arm punching through the center.
One punch had pierced a boulder!
This made Lu Li even more confident. Someone in the Organ-Refining Realm definitely wouldn't be his match!
But there had only been one Fire God Pill, and it was expensive and exceedingly rare.
Getting more would be tremendously difficult.
And he had no connections to help him...
Without pills to aid him, his progress would slow considerably.
Now was the time to level up quickly. He couldn't afford to slack off!
Lu Li's eyes suddenly lit up as he thought of the Wind and Rain Pavilion.
The Wind and Rain Pavilion had deep reserves. Surely it had pills that could greatly benefit someone in the Organ-Refining Realm!
With that thought, Lu Li decided to check out the Wind and Rain Pavilion.
In any case, if all the missions were too difficult, he could simply proceed step by step and let things take their natural course.
He could temper himself slowly and still make it.
Still, with his strength in the Tendon-Refining Realm, he was already an expert in Changfeng County. Surely there weren't many missions he couldn't handle.
Having made up his mind, Lu Li turned and headed straight for the cave.
He slipped through a narrow gap between some inconspicuous trees, and his nose caught the rich aroma.
Inside, Hu Niu was roasting meat, flipping skewers with one paw and sprinkling spices with the other. She worked with practiced ease, utterly absorbed in the task.
As he drew closer, he could feel a faint pressure coming from her body, like a volcano on the verge of erupting.
After eating the five remaining precious medicines, she had now hit a bottleneck and was ready to break through at any moment.
But breaking through was always a grueling process, and demons were no exception.
She might suddenly break through in a flash of inspiration.
Or she might remain stuck, making no progress at all.
Lu Li looked at Hu Niu. As usual, she showed no sign of breaking through.
He couldn't help wondering if the Wind and Rain Pavilion had anything that could help Hu Niu break through.
If Hu Niu also reached the Organ-Refining Realm, things would be more convenient for them in the future.
"Lu Li, the meat's ready." Hu Niu's sweet voice broke through his thoughts.
As time passed, Lu Li and Hu Niu had grown closer and closer.
Compared to the black-robed man, Lu Li was practically a saint.
He took only half the precious medicines and left the rest for her to eat.
And he didn't make her do all the hard labor every day.
Following Lu Li was peaceful and pleasant.
Lu Li hadn't used the Gu worm in his mind to control her. He had always treated her as an equal.
Most importantly, he had even brought her spices, making the roasted meat smell more delicious and enticing to a demon.
All three things together had won Hu Niu over completely, leaving her feeling deeply content.
Looking at Hu Niu's clear tiger eyes, Lu Li couldn't help finding it amusing.
Judging by how she acted, the black-robed man must have harmed her deeply.
The black-robed man deserved credit for how quickly his bond with Hu Niu had grown!
He was a little hungry now too, so he sat down, picked up a skewer, and took a hearty bite.
As he ate, he said, "Tonight, let's go to the Wind and Rain Pavilion."
"You mean the Wind and Rain Pavilion that fat Black Hawk mentioned last time?"
Lu Li nodded. "You've hit a bottleneck, and there's still no sign of a breakthrough."
"If the Wind and Rain Pavilion has something that can help, perhaps it can solve your problem."
Hu Niu's eyes widened, and she was deeply moved.
Lu Li seemed to radiate light, growing even more saintly in her eyes.
The Huang Family.
Four people were seated in the reception hall.
Besides Huang He and Wang Ju, there were two strangers.
Both were broad and burly, with hulking frames, faces covered in flesh, and tiger eyes that gleamed.
One had a scar across his face and was named Gao Huaiyi. The other was Zhang Tianlong.
"What brings you two friends from the Incense Fragrance Sect here?" Huang He asked with a smile.
The two were only in the Tendon-Refining Realm. In the Incense Fragrance Sect, they were no more than elite enforcers.
They were a notch weaker than him.
But because of their special status, and because they had come with a mission, he had no choice but to treat them courteously.
The two men from the Incense Fragrance Sect didn't put on airs just because they belonged to a major power.
After all, they were still a notch weaker.
Gao Huaiyi stood and clasped his fists. "Master Huang, Master Wang, members of our Incense Fragrance Sect have gone missing in your territory."
"Tianlong and I have been investigating, but no martial artists from the county town have entered Long-Abundance Mountain recently."
"Only the people who forage for food in the mountains come and go regularly."
"I heard that herb gatherers often go in and out of your area."
"I won't hide it from you both. Those two members of our sect were pursuing a man named Zhao Hongyun from the Ming Sect."
His posture relaxed, and his eyes suddenly sharpened. "Though the herb gatherers aren't trained in martial arts, that doesn't rule out them joining forces with Zhao Hongyun and striking from the shadows."
"This..." Huang He hesitated.
After a moment's thought, he said, "But there are so many herb gatherers. How could we possibly find out who it was?"
Zhang Tianlong grinned, a bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes. "Hahaha! Simple. Just kill them all. One of them is bound to be the culprit!"
Huang He and Wang Ju both stared wide-eyed, never expecting him to be so savage.
They couldn't help looking toward Gao Huaiyi, only to see that he wasn't surprised in the slightest. Instead, he nodded in agreement.
Their faces darkened at once.
Suppressing his anger, Huang He said gravely, "You two, if you act like this, where does that leave my family's dignity?"
"The Incense Fragrance Sect may be powerful, but surely you're not so arrogant as to look down on everyone?"
By stating his plan so openly, he had clearly shown no regard for them!
To Huang He's surprise, Gao Huaiyi's expression didn't change. He said calmly, "Don't be hasty. I haven't told you my conditions yet."
He glanced at Huang He and Wang Ju with interest, then spoke enticingly. "Would you like our Incense Fragrance Sect's help in breaking free of the county magistrate's control?"
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