Martial Entry Limit

Name: Qin Shujian

Identity: Liangshan Stronghold Chief

Affiliated power: Liangshan Stronghold

Realm: Martial Entry Tenth Level (within Liangshan Stronghold's territory, realm +2)

Power level: First-tier power

Techniques: Body Tempering Scripture, ninth level (Force Follows Will, flourishing vital energy, copper skin, Iron Bone, full marrow) (Mortal Tier, High Grade), Black Tiger Saber Technique (Heaven-Man Unity) (mortal tier, middle grade), Everlasting Spring Technique, seventh level (unceasing vitality, Longevity level 2) (mortal tier, middle grade), Seven Leaves Piercing Flowers Palm (proficient) (mortal tier, low grade), Five Elements Eight Trigrams Step (pinnacle mastery) (mortal tier, low grade)

Life Source: 3

Equipment: ninth-rank weapon, Tiger Head Saber; ninth-rank armor, Tiger Hide Outfit (Tiger Hide Coat, Tiger Hide Trousers, Tiger Hide Belt, Tiger Hide Boots)

Qin Shujian examined his attributes.

His gaze settled on his realm.

“Martial Entry Tenth Level?”

The ninth level of the Body Tempering Scripture had already raised his actual strength to the martial entry ninth level.

Now, even with the +2 bonus,

his realm had stopped at the Martial Entry Tenth Level.

This told Qin Shujian that the Martial Entry Tenth Level was a bottleneck in his current realm. Breaking through beyond it would require another transformation.

After all—

the realm bonus within his territory could only bridge minor realms, not major ones.

What was more, when he developed the ninth level of the Body Tempering Scripture, it had advanced directly from mortal tier, middle grade to Mortal Tier, High Grade.

This had instantly made the Body Tempering Scripture his highest-grade technique, surpassing even the mortal tier, middle grade Black Tiger Saber Technique.

The Everlasting Spring Technique had already advanced to mortal tier, middle grade when he developed its Sixth Level.

As for his Life Source,

he was back to square one.

His four-digit Life Source total had dwindled to a single digit.

Still, Qin Shujian was not discouraged.

“My actual realm is the martial entry ninth level, and the power bonus brings me straight to the Martial Entry Tenth Level. There should be no one left in Liangshan who can match me.”

At that thought, a sharp gleam seemed to flash in his eyes.

"A territory spanning fifty li was sizable for the old Liangshan Stronghold, but for the stronghold as it stands now, it's simply too small."

"How could shallow waters ever nurture a true dragon?"

The next day.

At the summit of Liangshan.

This was Qin Shujian's first time standing at Liangshan's summit, looking down over the entire Liangshan Territory.

As far as his eyes could see,

everything beyond Liangshan was lush and green.

In all his time in this world, this was the first time he had looked at everything around him with an unburdened mind.

And as his realm rose,

every aspect of his physique had undergone an astonishing transformation.

That included his eyesight.

A territory spanning fifty li

was not particularly large, but it certainly was not small either.

With his eyesight, Qin Shujian could clearly make out several villages scattered far apart across the land.

At that moment,

besides Qin Shujian, Zhang Tieniu and Wang Tiezhu were also standing at Liangshan's summit.

These two NPCs had both started out as Liangshan bandits.

Qin Shujian now regarded them as trusted followers.

"Do you know what those villages are?" Qin Shujian asked without turning around, his gaze still fixed on the distance.

"They're local villages in Liangshan Territory. Every year, they pay us a set tribute in exchange for their safety." Wang Tiezhu gathered his thoughts before continuing, "We also go to those villages occasionally to purchase supplies."

Hearing this, Qin Shujian understood.

According to Wang Tiezhu,

these villages essentially paid Liangshan Stronghold an annual protection fee, and the stronghold offered them a measure of protection in return, keeping other powers from preying on them.

More importantly,

Liangshan Territory was actually quite remote.

The bandits of Liangshan Stronghold needed food every day, and over time, that consumption added up to a considerable amount.

Going elsewhere to buy supplies carried certain risks.

Raiding other villages and strongholds likewise meant risking losses.

Under these circumstances, occasionally trading with these villages was the safest approach.

Of course,

"purchasing" was merely how Wang Tiezhu put it.

Whether those transactions were actually forced was open to interpretation.

Still, Qin Shujian figured that the old Liangshan Stronghold would not have oppressed the villages in its own territory too harshly.

After all, few people would kill the goose that laid the golden eggs unless they were fools.

Having gained a more thorough understanding of Liangshan Territory,

Qin Shujian turned to the two men and said gravely, "I'll give you three days to investigate Rubble Forest. I need to know the exact strength of its three powers.

"If circumstances permit, I also want you to investigate all the territories bordering Liangshan Territory."

"Chief, could you be planning to..."

As though something had occurred to him, Wang Tiezhu stared at Qin Shujian in disbelief.

His eyes held both shock and irrepressible joy.

The power's advancement seemed to have raised the original bandits' intelligence a notch as well.

The old Wang Tiezhu would never have thought this far ahead.

Now, however, Qin Shujian had only hinted at his intentions, and he had already grasped most of the key implications.

Qin Shujian said calmly, "A territory of fifty li is simply too small. It could accommodate Wu Sheng and a weak Liangshan Stronghold.

"But now, it can no longer accommodate the stronghold as it stands, nor can it accommodate you and me."

He had already been considering this when he previously sent men to investigate the surrounding areas.

At the time, however, the threat posed by the Novice Village remained unresolved. Though he was not weak, he could not be considered particularly strong either.

Now, he had wiped out the Novice Village and its many players in one fell swoop.

His own strength had also reached the very peak of martial entry.

Qin Shujian believed

he was now qualified to extend Liangshan Stronghold's reach beyond this mere fifty-li territory.

There were five places: Lion-Tiger Plains, Rubble Forest, Endless Mountains, the Xining Rebels, and Undying Plains.

In Qin Shujian's view, Rubble Forest was the best place to start.

The very word "rebels" in the Xining Rebels' name suggested that they were probably entangled in a great many complications.

As for the other places, he did not know much about them either.

By contrast, Zhang Tieniu had previously scouted Rubble Forest and gathered some information on its bandits. That was what finally convinced him to start there.

A meal had to be eaten one mouthful at a time.

A road had to be traveled one step at a time.

The players within his territory had all been wiped out.

Both his overall strength and his individual strength had risen rapidly to the limit of what he could achieve in the short term.

Qin Shujian considered his current position a pretty good start.

With this hand of cards,

as long as he did not deliberately play recklessly,

he was confident he would not end up losing everything.

As for his original wish, Qin Shujian was watching it come true, step by step.

As long as he always stayed ahead of the players,

he would never have to worry about them threatening him.

To accomplish that, beyond the cheat-like improvements provided by Life Source, he would have to rely on Liangshan Stronghold's many bandits to harvest large amounts of Life Source for him.

Please support this story however you can!