One Advancement After Another

Name: Qin Shujian

Identity: Stronghold Chief of Liangshan

Affiliation: Liangshan Stronghold

Realm: Martial Entry Seventh Level (within Liangshan Stronghold's territory, realm +1)

Techniques: Body Tempering Scripture, Sixth Level (+) (strength follows intent) (abundant vitality) (Mortal Tier, Middle Grade), Black Tiger Saber Technique (peak perfection) (Mortal Tier, Middle Grade), Everlasting Spring Technique, complete mastery (+) (unceasing regeneration) (Mortal Tier, Low Grade), Seven Leaves Piercing Flowers Palm (+) (proficient) (Mortal Tier, Low Grade), Five Elements Eight Trigrams Step (+) (peak perfection) (Mortal Tier, Low Grade)

Life Source: 503

Equipment: Ninth-Rank Sharp Weapon, Tiger Head Saber; Ninth-Rank Armor, Tiger Hide Outfit (Tiger Hide Coat, Tiger Hide Trousers, Tiger Hide Belt, Tiger Hide Boots)

These were Qin Shujian's current attributes.

Over just a few days, countless players had died at the mountain bandits' hands, causing his life source to rise almost constantly. The unknown technique had also been renamed the Body Tempering Scripture.

During that time, he had raised the Everlasting Spring Technique to complete mastery at the fifth layer, gaining the special effect of unceasing regeneration.

As for the Seven Leaves Piercing Flowers Palm, he had only made a token investment, raising it to proficiency.

With the Black Tiger Saber Technique as his means of attack, the palm technique was of little practical use.

But Qin Shujian had raised the Five Elements Eight Trigrams Step to peak perfection.

His realm might not have changed at all.

Yet only Qin Shujian himself knew just how much stronger he had become by combining the Sixth Level of the Body Tempering Scripture with the fully mastered Everlasting Spring Technique.

Now—

Looking at the more than five hundred points of Life Source on his attribute panel and the plus signs beside all his martial techniques, Qin Shujian tapped the Sixth Level of the Body Tempering Scripture without hesitation.

In an instant.

His Life Source plunged by three hundred points.

The words "Body Tempering Scripture, Sixth Level" distorted, then became "Body Tempering Scripture, seventh layer."

Boom!

At that very moment, Qin Shujian suddenly felt as though a fire were burning inside his body. An agonizing pain tore through his skin.

His previously normal skin rapidly withered, flaking away inch by inch like fallen leaves.

Beneath the dead skin was skin of a normal color.

The process repeated nine times before the changes finally stopped.

Now, Qin Shujian's skin looked as though it had been cast from bronze, seemingly indestructible.

Martial Entry Seventh Level!

Copper Skin!

A brilliant gleam flashed in Qin Shujian's eyes.

When he looked at the attribute panel, his realm had become Martial Entry Eighth Level after the bonus.

And with the Body Tempering Scripture advancing from the Sixth Level to the seventh layer, it had gained an additional attribute: Copper Skin.

"Copper Skin?" Qin Shujian pinched the skin on his arm between two fingers. It felt supple and resilient, yet also had a metallic texture.

Seeing this, he drew the Tiger Head Saber and lightly ran it across his arm.

The blade passed over his skin with a cold touch.

When he examined it closely, his skin had not changed at all.

At that.

Qin Shujian immediately made another cut.

Unlike before, he used his normal strength this time.

The blade left a faint white mark.

Only when he used thirty percent of his strength did a slight sting come from his arm, and Qin Shujian immediately stopped.

Looking at his arm again, he saw a faint trace of red.

Hiss!

"What incredible defense!"

Even Qin Shujian could not help drawing in a sharp breath.

Only now did he understand just how formidable the Copper Skin ability granted by the seventh layer of the Body Tempering Scripture truly was.

The Tiger Head Saber was a Ninth-Rank Sharp Weapon, far sharper than ordinary swords and sabers. At least so far, Qin Shujian had never encountered anything it could not cut through.

On top of that, his current Martial Entry Eighth Level realm gave him several thousand jin of strength.

Even thirty percent of that strength was enough to easily overwhelm an expert at Martial Entry Fifth Level.

Such strength, paired with the Ninth-Rank Sharp Weapon Tiger Head Saber, had only barely breached his Copper Skin's defenses.

That meant—

Even if he stood there without moving, an expert at Martial Entry Fifth Level would have almost no chance of breaking through his defenses without a Ninth-Rank Sharp Weapon.

Only someone at Entering Martial Sixth Layer or above could threaten him.

"Invincible against anyone below Entering Martial Sixth Layer!"

Those words surfaced in Qin Shujian's mind.

This was not invincibility in some limited sense, but true invincibility.

The kind where he could stand still and let people hack at him, and they might still fail to break through his defenses.

Then he looked at the more than two hundred points of Life Source remaining.

Qin Shujian turned his attention to the plus sign beside the Everlasting Spring Technique. Considering it a waste to leave the points unused, he directly developed the fully mastered Everlasting Spring Technique one layer further.

Unknown technique, Sixth Level!

Special effect: "extended lifespan"!

His body trembled slightly, and a warm current surged through him. Qin Shujian felt as though his body had become a little younger. Though he was already in peak condition, he seemed to brim with even greater vitality.

With no other changes, he simply kept the name Everlasting Spring Technique for this unknown technique he had developed to the Sixth Level.

Looking at the words "extended lifespan," Qin Shujian thought, Extended lifespan... it seems the Everlasting Spring Technique leans more toward nurturing health. I wonder if developing it further will truly grant eternal youth.

But that was a matter for later.

With the Everlasting Spring Technique developed to the Sixth Level, complemented by the seventh layer of the Body Tempering Scripture, Qin Shujian felt his strength increase somewhat once again.

With that.

Qin Shujian was quite satisfied.

He would attack Beginner Village 10021 tomorrow. Whether powerful experts were hidden within it remained uncertain.

Every increase in strength meant a better chance of victory.

Judging by his first encounter with those three NPCs, however, Beginner Village 10021 most likely had experts beyond Martial Entry Fifth Level.

But his actual realm was now Martial Entry Seventh Level, and his faction's bonus raised it to Martial Entry Eighth Level.

Even if it was only a pseudo-eighth level.

With the Everlasting Spring Technique added to it, Qin Shujian was confident he would not be much weaker than someone at Martial Entry Eighth Level.

Nor did he believe a Novice Village could harbor even stronger experts.

If it truly did, he could only accept his defeat.

The next day.

At Liangshan Stronghold.

Qin Shujian stood with seventy-three strong, sturdy mountain bandits behind him.

Excluding the old, the young, and those who had yet to respawn, these were all the forces Liangshan Stronghold currently had.

Among the seventy-three mountain bandits.

One was at Fourth Level of Martial Entry, six were at Martial Entry Third Level, seventeen were at Entering Martial Second Layer, and the rest were all at Entering Martial First Layer.

Silence blanketed the scene.

No one spoke. Only the faint, almost inaudible sound of breathing could be heard.

As he watched the morning sun rise in the distance and its first rays spill over Liangshan.

Qin Shujian waved a hand and said calmly, "Move out!"

With those words.

Qin Shujian took the first step forward, and Zheng Fang, Zhang Tieniu, and the others immediately followed close behind.

Most of the mountain bandits headed down the mountain with them.

Only a dozen or so remained where they were, staying behind to guard the stronghold.