Short blade, Evil-Slayer!

"Holy shit! Did it bug out?"

The string of Meridian-Opening Pills had already left Yu Bu'e doubting himself.

When he drew something else, his first reaction was actually that the system had malfunctioned.

The system panel in his vision flashed with multicolored lights, like the cheap running lights on old knockoff phones.

Yu Bu'e's heart raced as he stared at the short blade that appeared on the panel.

[Short blade: Evil-Slayer]

[Forging material: kindling]

[Durability: 100]

[Length: 20 cm]

[Width: 3 cm]

[Weight: 6 kg]

[...]

Yu Bu'e reached out and picked up the short blade from the coffee table.

The blade had a leather sheath. He had no idea what kind of hide it was, but it felt tough and supple-definitely not synthetic leather!

It weighed heavily in his hand. This little blade actually weighed six kilograms.

The short blade was straight, with a blade and handle of equal length, and it fit comfortably in his grip.

Diamond patterns on the handle increased friction against his palm, making it less likely to slip out of his hand in combat.

He released the clasp on the sheath. Under the light, the blade gleamed a distinctive deep blue, with dragon-scale patterns across its surface and a shallow groove down the middle.

What excited Yu Bu'e most was that this was actually a kindling blade!

For a long time after the demons appeared, humanity had been forced to endure their attacks, its habitable territory shrinking constantly.

After all, the conventional weapons of that time could not hurt them.

According to the records, when Demon Beasts first appeared, humans initially attacked them with firearms.

But bullets striking Demon Beasts were like bullets falling into a swamp, swallowed up by their bodies.

Humans had also tried using nuclear weapons.

Not only had those attacks failed to inflict casualties on the Demon Clan, but the radioactive materials had instead forced some of the demons to undergo a second evolution...

Later, the emergence of martial artists gave humanity a chance to catch its breath.

The post-cataclysm world also brought new opportunities. Humanity pried open the door to martial arts, developing qi within their bodies.

Once that qi circulated through their limbs and bones, their fists and feet could injure and kill demons!

Generation after generation of pioneering martial artists built a bulwark of flesh and blood, fighting a prolonged tug-of-war against the demons.

Then, after countless experiments and a few lucky accidents, humanity discovered that weapons forged from rhenium fused with demon blood essence could inflict more effective damage on demons.

This new element was named "kindling"-a reminder to endure hardship without forgetting their resolve, and to pass the flame from one generation to the next!

However, both rhenium and demon blood essence were extremely scarce.

Even the Demon-Slaying Army's Evil-Quelling Sabers used kindling only along their cutting edges.

With the emergence of kindling, Great Xia finally drove the Demon Clan beyond the Great Wall!

"This short blade might be a little small, but even its handle is made of kindling!"

Yu Bu'e tightened his grip on the short blade, his heart brimming with delight!

"A short blade is actually perfect for me. I can strap it to my arm and carry it easily. If I'd gotten a full-sized saber instead... I couldn't exactly wear it on my back to school, could I?"

He had yet to join the Demon-Slaying Army, but he already had a kindling blade. Half his dream had come true!

Filled with excitement, he immediately set off for the park.

He was like a kid who had just bought a toy gun and couldn't wait to find a bottle to shoot!

In a corner of the park, Yu Bu'e wandered about.

He looked left and right, soon settling on a target.

After checking his surroundings and making sure no one was around, he drew the Evil-Slayer short blade from his left sleeve.

The deep-blue blade swept lightly across a small, crooked tree.

Before he even put any force into it, the blade left a cut three centimeters deep in the bowl-thick trunk. His eyes widened, and he lifted the blade for a closer look.

"It really does cut through iron like butter!"

Just then, he spotted a rusty iron box nearby.

Under Evil-Slayer's sharp edge, the rust-covered sheet metal sliced open as easily as a sheet of paper!

Yu Bu'e bounced around in excitement, itching to find a Demon Beast and test his skills right then and there!

Once he calmed down, he carefully sheathed Evil-Slayer and temporarily strapped it to his calf so it wouldn't interfere with his fist training.

After he raised Meridian-Opening Fist to [Peak Mastery], its benefits went beyond making his movements smooth and fluid.

He could even clearly sense how the qi flowed through his body, allowing him to control his strength, qi, and breathing rhythm with greater precision!

Moreover, once he entered this wondrous state, his perception seemed to improve as well.

As he picked up the pace, the qi within his body flowed much faster, and his blood began to seethe.

Invisible currents of air formed around him, rolling like ocean waves in resonance with the qi inside his body.

The fallen leaves carpeting the ground were swept into the air, dancing around Yu Bu'e as though they had been given life.

In a pavilion in the distance.

Ning Xiu took off his glasses, blew the dust from the lenses, and put them back on before glancing at the man in a trench coat beside him.

"That kid's Meridian-Opening Fist seems to have changed again."

The man in the trench coat held a lit, slim black cigarette between his long fingers. The smoke he slowly exhaled carried a faint chocolate scent.

"I saw."

"To improve so much in such a short time, and take an ordinary Meridian-Opening Fist this far-Shen Zhe, don't you find it strange?"

"Ning Xiu, the annoying thing about you is that you always have to get to the bottom of everything."

The man in the trench coat dropped his cigarette butt and ground it out, then stood and shook the ash off his clothes. "Everyone has secrets. You're no exception. Why pry so much?"

Ning Xiu frowned. "Aren't you worried his secret might have something to do with evil entities?"

As the old saying went, anything out of the ordinary had something sinister behind it. Ning Xiu was naturally curious, and he badly wanted to know what secret Yu Bu'e was hiding.

"No." Shen Zhe smiled, narrowing his eyes as he looked toward Yu Bu'e. "I know what he wants to do."

Ning Xiu paused in surprise. "You've met him?"

"I have. Three years ago." Shen Zhe seemed to sink into a memory, only to come back to himself when the wind blew. "It's getting late. Time to go home."

With that, he turned and left.

Unbothered, Ning Xiu smiled in Yu Bu'e's direction.

"Looks like the Insight Academy is about to gain another outstanding student."

"He won't go there," Shen Zhe replied as he stepped out of the pavilion.

Ning Xiu turned to look at his retreating back. "Why?"

Shen Zhe didn't answer. He merely waved a hand casually and walked farther away.

"What a lousy attitude..."

Ning Xiu muttered a curse, then looked back at Yu Bu'e. His expression abruptly changed.

He clearly saw a faint white glow seem to envelop Yu Bu'e, who was immersed in his Meridian-Opening Fist practice, only to vanish an instant later.

"Did he just... open a spirit meridian? He had eleven spirit meridians before, and now... he's broken through?!"