This was the [Newcomer Secret Realm], a place with all sorts of advantages for newcomers.
It was an incredibly precious opportunity.
Wu Yu now had enough resources to seize this opportunity...
Hunt down the Mountain Lord!
"Since the bandit Chief planned everything, the Mountain Lord's injury probably wasn't a trap. The Village Chief hadn't lied to me."
"A gravely wounded Mountain Lord... if I kill it, the Cards it drops and any treasure chest it might leave behind will definitely be better than the Chief's."
"Lostway Cave is where the greatest rewards in this [Newcomer Secret Realm] lie!"
"Once I get the most valuable treasure, I can head for the Evacuation Point before the mist arrives. Won't I be leaving with a massive haul?"
A flood of ideas suddenly sprang into Wu Yu's mind.
Coming back to his senses, he suppressed his excitement and took out the "Tiger Power Stance" and [Dungeon Key].
The Dungeon Key looked utterly ordinary, with nothing special about it.
Wu Yu had also explored the entire Evil Tiger Stronghold without finding any dungeon.
"Wait..."
Wu Yu thought back for a moment, then lowered his head and flipped through a few pages.
Several entries mentioned the bandit Chief going to Lostway Cave to deliver "blood food."
"Day fifty-one. There's nowhere left in the stronghold to keep the merchants and travelers we captured. Looks like we'll have to put them over at Lostway Cave."
"Day seventy-seven. The Mountain Lord dislikes crowding, so it took us a great deal more effort to settle all that blood food inside the cave. Fine by me. This should make the Mountain Lord lower its guard!"
"So the dungeon is inside Lostway Cave!"
Deep in thought, Wu Yu put the [Dungeon Key] back into his Inventory.
Then,
he looked at the "Tiger Power Stance" and crushed it without hesitation!
The Card scattered into motes of light, which then surged into his body.
For an instant, Wu Yu felt as though he had become a bandit.
Every day, he rose early to practice the "Tiger Strength Stake Technique," striving to become a Transcendent Martial Artist and earn a position as a minor leader.
After eight years of grueling practice, he finally mastered the basics of the stance technique. His vitality gradually began to display extraordinary qualities, far surpassing that of ordinary people!
By the time Wu Yu came back to himself, the memories in his mind were fading. Only those concerning the practice of the "Tiger Power Stance" remained.
He stood up and assessed his body, finding that he had indeed grown a little sturdier,
his muscles bulging and his entire body brimming with strength!
"I've gotten stronger again. I wonder how strong I am now. Can I compare to Yu Tiezhu's [nine oxen's strength]?"
Curious, he casually took out a Low-Quality Chopper.
With just a little pressure from his fingers, the blade bent into an exaggerated curve.
Wu Yu beamed at the sight.
Clearly, this was nothing compared to a Transcendent Martial Artist whose skin could stop bullets and whose fist could punch through iron armor.
But it was a significant improvement achieved with a single thought!
"Looks like I have unparalleled talent for martial arts, too!"
Wu Yu nodded in satisfaction.
"Come to think of it, this 'Tiger Power Stance' is a little different from the previous two!"
"It's a bit like taking a [Vitality Pill]. It mainly boosts the body's vitality!"
The "Tiger Roar Eight-Slash Saber" and "Heaven-and-Earth Toss" were of different grades, but both included methods for essence refinement and spirit refinement.
Both consumed vitality.
One mainly increased physical strength and granted mastery of the [Tiger Roar] secret technique.
The other mainly improved bodily agility and granted mastery of the [Heaven-Earth State] secret technique.
"So the relationship between them... is increasing vitality versus consuming it."
Wu Yu pondered this.
Of the Zhu Xia Federation's three transcendent systems, Wu Yu had chosen the path of immortal cultivation, so he did not know much about Martial Artists.
He only knew that Martial Artists were extremely popular. At least half the students at River City Advanced Academy wanted to become one!
"Tiger Power Stance" was a blue-grade technique that could increase vitality. Combined with pills such as [Vitality Pills], it could allow someone to open the [transcendent gate] through rigorous training and elevate their level of existence.
This was the local path to transcendence. Pills and hard training were both indispensable.
But in the real world, a single injection of [Nine Dragons' Might] rendered [Vitality Pills] and ten years of grueling practice meaningless.
After familiarizing himself with his new strength, Wu Yu left the Hall of Gathering Heroes.
Before he had gone far, however, he noticed something wrong!
A group of bandits was coming up from below the stronghold, carrying choppers and bows!
"An Evil Tiger Stronghold hunting party?"
Wu Yu frowned and looked toward the rear of the group.
Sure enough, twenty or thirty people were bound with ropes, looking bedraggled as the bandits dragged them along.
Among them was even Old Wu, the gun-wielding villager, covered in wounds and dirt.
"Why is Old Wu with them?"
"Haven't these people noticed what happened to the stronghold?"
Wu Yu was puzzled, but he could not be bothered to dwell on it.
The bandit party had already entered the narrow path and walked into the trap he had laid.
He carefully hid behind a large rock, waiting as the bandits were surrounded by "little pebbles," step by step.
One step, two steps, three...
Just as all the bandits were about to enter the blast radius, a piercing shriek suddenly sounded from the stronghold's Residential Area!
"Preeet!"
It seemed to be some kind of bird whistle. The bandits immediately grew alert and started retreating.
I can't wait any longer!
Wu Yu's pupils contracted, and he decisively issued a mental command.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Divine Bird Sigils lit up, and bursts of flame erupted, joining into a sea of fire.
In the blink of an eye, amid the deafening explosions, more than twenty bandits were blown apart, their charred remains scattered everywhere.
Some bandits who had not entered the trap were also caught in the blasts. Some screamed and collapsed with severe injuries, others lost arms or legs, and still others were engulfed in flames.
The rear of the group immediately descended into chaos. One unlucky captive was accidentally killed by a panicking bandit's slash and lay twitching on the ground, clutching his neck.
The chaos left the archers unable to act effectively. They could not even take aim.
Meanwhile, Wu Yu had already crept closer, seizing the opportunity to send several little pebbles flying!
Whoosh!
The little pebbles changed direction in midair and landed in several different positions.
Boom! Boom!
Flames erupted again. This time, seven or eight more bandits failed to escape and were killed instantly,
leaving only three bandits lucky enough to evade the blasts.
Unfortunately for them...
Another little pebble flew over, killing two with a thunderous explosion.
A Short Blade suddenly appeared from the side and pierced the last bandit's neck!
"Urgh!"
The bandit archer tried to clutch his neck, but he could not stop the bleeding. After struggling a few times, he went still.
Watching the bandits fall one after another, Wu Yu did not recklessly step out. Instead, he kept his eyes on the distance.
Only after all of them except the one killed by mistake had vanished into light did he hurry over.
At that moment, the bound captives were also staring at the scene in shock.
Fortunately, they had been at the very rear of the group, so none of them had been caught in the blasts.
"He's a Martial Artist! We're saved!"
"Was that magic? There was a flash of white light, and those bandits disappeared!"
"Hero! Please save me! I'm a steward of the Golden Chariot Trading Association. I can pay you in silver!"
Everything had happened too quickly, but after witnessing that astonishing scene, everyone was overjoyed.
Among them, Old Wu was also watching with delight.
Suddenly, he remembered something and hurriedly shouted, "Brother Wu, watch out! Another bandit party went that way!"
Before you continue