Above Perfection

After tasting the benefits of going into the mountains alone on the first day.

In the past, Gu Sheng would go into the mountains every three to four days, and most of the time, he went alone.

Sometimes he would also cooperate with other hunters. After all, for some large prey, even if Gu Sheng hunted it alone, it would be difficult for him to carry it back.

However, now, Gu Sheng generally only chose to go into the mountains with Gu Erniu when he was around, keeping the benefits within the family.

Gu Erniu's frequency of going into the mountains also gradually increased.

Autumn arrived, and the prey grew plump with fat, with one animal being equivalent to two in spring.

Coupled with the need to save money for Gu Wan, Gu Erniu worked very hard.

In the blink of an eye.

More than a month had passed.

During this time, Gu Sheng's growth was significant.

After gradually becoming familiar with the environment in the mountains, Gu Sheng had already begun to venture deeper into Cang Mountain. His perfected Archery skills allowed him to navigate Cang Mountain with ease, and his hunting success rate far surpassed that of other hunters.

He basically never returned empty-handed.

Not only that.

He could often hunt medium-sized prey such as roe deer, wild deer, and wild wolves, earning a lot of money and making many hunters envious.

Fortunately, Gu Sheng was low-key and humble.

He also sometimes went into the mountains with other hunters, sharing some of the profits. Coupled with Gu Erniu's high reputation among the hunters, the other hunters were merely envious and did not ostracize Gu Sheng.

This was normal. To them, Gu Sheng was a god of wealth in a sense.

As long as they went into the mountains with Gu Sheng, unless they found no trace of prey, they would basically not return empty-handed.

Gu Sheng had gradually revealed an Archery level that surpassed Gu Erniu's, earning everyone's admiration.

His reputation grew day by day.

If Gu Sheng were not still young, becoming the leader among the hunters of Gu Family Village would only be a matter of time.

However, Gu Sheng did not care about these things.

He maintained good relationships with the other hunters simply to make hunting in the mountains smoother, live more comfortably, and avoid wasting energy on trivial matters.

What he cared about more was himself.

He always remembered his goal.

Save money and practice martial arts!

As the hunting progressed during this period.

Gu Sheng's wealth began to swell at a visible rate. Currently, he had five taels of silver in cash alone, a fortune that exceeded the savings of the vast majority of the villagers in Gu Family Village.

However, Gu Sheng was very low-key, just quietly accumulating wealth.

And that wasn't all.

Gu Sheng still had some hides at home, which he would sell for a good price the next time the village's procurement team went to the city.

Hides were different from meat. If they were well-presented and caught the buyer's eye, they could fetch extremely high prices.

Although the main family also bought them, hunters generally preferred to save up more and sell them in Canghe County, where buyers were more generous.

This day.

Gu Sheng did not go hunting in the mountains; he was chopping wood at home.

A few days ago.

Gu He found Gu Sheng and said that the reserve of chopped wood was basically sufficient. Furthermore, since Gu Sheng often had to go out hunting, he suggested Gu Sheng quit the wood-chopping job. His attitude was very sincere.

He had benefited greatly from Gu Sheng during this time, and he also intended to befriend Gu Sheng, so he merely discussed it with him.

Gu Sheng agreed after a moment's thought.

Firstly, he felt a bit embarrassed. In the past month, he had gone into the mountains more than ten times.

If it were any other odd job, he would have been kicked out long ago!

Although Gu He was a steward, he couldn't cover everything with one hand. Other stewards were not on good terms with Gu He, so he couldn't overstep his bounds.

Secondly, Gu Sheng thought that the Wood Chopping skill was not far from reaching the perfection stage at 100%. Since the main family had no more wood to chop, he decided to stock up on firewood for the winter, which would be enough for the perfection stage promotion.

As for whether he could continue to gain experience after reaching the perfection stage, he would deal with that when the time came.

Considering all these factors.

Gu Sheng resigned from his wood-chopping job. Anyway, the ten wen coins were a small matter to him now.

For this, Gu He felt somewhat apologetic and insisted on inviting Gu Sheng to his home for a meal.

During the meal, Gu Sheng also met Gu He's niece.

Although she was still young, she was indeed a beautiful child. In time, she would likely be even more charming than Li Lian.

But Gu Sheng's heart wasn't in it, much to Gu He's disappointment.

While these thoughts raced through his mind, Gu Sheng's movements were unhurried.

Crack!

Gu Sheng didn't even need to look at the firewood. The cleaver in his hand seemed to have eyes, effortlessly splitting the wood in two, as precise as if measured by a ruler.

In the sunlight.

Gu Sheng was shirtless. His upper body muscles were lean but not exaggerated. As he swung the cleaver with a slight exertion, his muscles rippled with attractive curves, and sweat dripped down in perfect arcs.

Although chopping wood with a cleaver was more strenuous, it was no trouble for Gu Sheng at his current level of Wood Chopping.

Crack!

Crack!

The crisp sound of splitting wood continued, growing more rapid. Gu Sheng felt himself entering a strange state.

It was as if a mysterious power was gathering on the cleaver, aiding him as if divinely inspired.

He had a flash of insight, knowing this was the crucial moment.

Swing the cleaver, chop the wood, swing again, chop again...

Gu Sheng's movements became increasingly fluid, imbued with a picturesque beauty. The power on the cleaver grew more evident, as if gestating.

After an unknown amount of time.

Suddenly.

Gu Sheng tensed his arms, muscles flexing. He swung the cleaver lightly, and the wood before him split in two without any resistance, truly without any resistance, as if slicing through air.

Gu Sheng froze, staring blankly at his hands and the cleaver, unable to believe that he had just made that cut.

This was even more profound and smooth than reaching perfection in Wood Chopping. He even suspected he had just cut through a hollow, rotten log.

But the two halves of the wood clearly told him otherwise.

He even felt.

That with that single strike, he could have easily cleaved through even the hardest ironwood!

"Wood Chopping perfection, I've finally advanced!"

A look of surprise flashed in Gu Sheng's eyes.

After months of relentless effort, his Wood Chopping had finally advanced to the next stage. He had eagerly anticipated this and couldn't wait to open his status panel.

[Name]: Gu Sheng
[Age]: 14
[Realm]: None
[Martial Arts]: Wood Chopping (Special Effect: Tier 1 Rend), Archery (Great Accomplishment 61%)

Gu Sheng's Archery had also reached 61% proficiency in the Great Accomplishment stage. It would take at most another month to reach perfection, and perhaps even less time now that he no longer needed to focus on Wood Chopping.

But what Gu Sheng was most interested in.

Was the information following Wood Chopping.

Special Effect: Tier 1 Rend!

"Beyond perfection is a special effect? Was the reason my previous strike was so powerful due to this Rend effect?"

Gu Sheng recalled that strike, feeling divinely inspired, as if an unknown power had gathered on the cleaver, and the wood had been easily torn apart like thin paper!

He couldn't imagine.

How terrifying this strike with the Rend effect would be if it landed on a person.

He even wanted to test if his Rend effect could tear through the tough skin membrane of a Skin Refining stage martial artist.

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