Seventh-level magical beasts were scarce in Mogan Forest, and finding one took some effort.
For three days, Andrew wandered near the center of the forest. For now, he had no desire to challenge the eighth-level magical beast, the Windwing Tiger King. An eighth-level magical beast was far beyond a seventh-level one, vastly stronger in both strength and speed.
In fact, among high-level magical beasts, the gap between each level was enormous.
Unless Andrew's battle-qi broke through to the seventh level and he became a high-level warrior, his chances of escaping the Windwing Tiger King would be no greater than thirty percent.
In the southern part of Mogan Forest lay a great canyon. Steep rocks rose on either side, their surfaces so smooth they seemed to have been hewn with blades and axes. Few trees grew along the canyon's edge, leaving it looking desolate. When Andrew reached this place, something stirred within him, and he stopped.
Night fell, and darkness once again descended over Mogan Forest. All was quiet. Apart from the wind, only the calls of insects sounded among the trees, rising and falling like a symphony.
Andrew sat cross-legged on a large rock, refining his battle-qi. Inside him, two dragon-shaped streams of battle-qi intertwined and revolved, gathering together in his dantian and merging into one. This was lightning-fire fusion battle-qi.
After cultivating, Andrew took out his large saber and began carving. There was barely any light in the darkness, yet even in such conditions, he accurately carved the boulder before him into shape. In an hour, he turned the boulder, originally a zhang across, into the Twin-Tailed Golden Thread Snake he had killed earlier. The stone sculpture captured the very instant the Twin-Tailed Golden Thread Snake cast its magic, vivid and lifelike.
"Complete mastery of the basics. I feel like I'm almost there!"
The moment he finished the sculpture, Andrew suddenly gained an insight. Complete mastery of the basics meant making the weapon in his hand part of his body. The man never left the saber, and the saber never left the man. The man was the saber, and the saber was the man. That was the meaning of complete mastery of the basics.
The long saber in Andrew's hand was no divine weapon, merely an ordinary one. A weapon without a spirit made achieving oneness between man and saber even harder. With his comprehension, he had practiced the saber for six years and only now reached the threshold of complete mastery of the basics. Who knew how far he still was from wielding heavy weapons as though they were light?
Even so, he was not anxious. Mindset was a major issue in cultivation. He could not be impatient or advance recklessly. By progressing step by step, success would naturally follow.
Gazing at the sky full of stars, Andrew suddenly slashed with his saber. The slash had ordinary speed and ordinary force, yet this simple strike sent saber qi flying five zhang, slicing straight through a protruding stone pillar on the opposite side of the canyon. With a rumbling crash, the massive protruding rock fell into the canyon. In the night, the sound carried far, far away.
After that slash, Andrew seemed to lose the ability to move. He stood there blankly, utterly motionless. More than two hours later, he began swinging his saber again, performing all sorts of movements. This time, no saber qi appeared. He remained in that state until the following morning, when the rising sun shone into his eyes and startled him awake.
"Did I just... gain enlightenment?"
Andrew was overwhelmed with surprise and delight. Calming himself to look within, he found that earthshaking changes had taken place inside his body. Looking again at the world around him, he suddenly felt that everything had never been so familiar and clear. To him, it was as though he had entered a new world. He understood that he had broken through!
For some unknown reason, a convergence of circumstances had led Andrew into a state of "sudden enlightenment" the previous night. His strength was already considerable, his spiritual power was strong, and his mastery of saber techniques went without saying. Every condition was at a critical point, just a little short of allowing him to break through and become a high-level warrior. That tiny gap had stubbornly held him back, forcing him to venture out to temper himself.
"Ten years of bitter cultivation can't compare to a single morning of sudden enlightenment. There's truth in that saying. Sudden enlightenment is so mysterious!"
Andrew sighed softly. Such an opportunity could only be encountered, not sought. It took both talent and luck and could not be forced. A single night of sudden enlightenment had brought him to complete mastery of the basics. From this day forward, the bottleneck to becoming a high-level warrior no longer existed.
Andrew threw back his head and let out a long cry. He had waited so long for this day. Leaving his homeland three years ago, facing an Iron-Armored Boar in a life-and-death struggle, three years of arduous cultivation... now, it had all been worth it!
Strapping his saber to his back, Andrew left the canyon in a few leaps. Battle-qi now surged throughout his body, and his desire for battle soared. He wanted to find a high-level magical beast to vent it on. To draw one out, Andrew deliberately made a tremendous racket as he traveled.
"Come on, don't disappoint me! I can feel it. In five days at most, my battle-qi will break through, and I'll become a high-level warrior. Today will be my last battle as a mid-level warrior!" Andrew's face brimmed with excitement.
"Today, I must have a great battle. I must kill a high-level magical beast with the strength of a mid-level warrior. After this, I won't have another chance!"
Andrew knew that in Coiling Dragon, cultivation levels were strictly delineated, and challenging someone above one's level was extremely difficult, especially in his situation. But he had something to rely on.
His lightning-fire fusion battle-qi was what gave him confidence!
Sure enough, the tremendous noise attracted a seventh-level magical beast, a Dark Demonic Ape.
The Dark Demonic Ape was a high-level magical beast second only to the Windwing Tiger King in Mogan Forest. The Keli Tribe had encountered one before, losing many tribespeople before escaping its pursuit. As such, the grand elder also had information about it.
Andrew recalled the details. The Dark Demonic Ape was a seventh-level, darkness-type magical beast with a powerful body, a savage temperament, and a strong vindictive streak. Once it fought, it would not stop until one side was dead. Its magic was also bizarre: it could spew black flames. Those struck remained physically unharmed but suffered agony worse than death until they died.
As Andrew looked at it, his fighting spirit surged.
This Dark Demonic Ape stood three meters tall, its form resembling a human's and its entire body covered in black fur. It was thickset, with bulging muscles all over its body, brimming with strength. What drew Andrew's attention most were its eyes. The Dark Demonic Ape's eyes were red, unforgettable at a glance. They were filled with an air of savagery and destruction that shook the soul, befitting a darkness-type magical beast.
Facing the seventh-level magical beast, Andrew drew his saber, planted his foot, and attacked first. He felt neither worry nor fear. It was as though he were simply carving as usual, his saber techniques following his will, as calm as flowing water.
The Dark Demonic Ape had barely steadied itself when Andrew flashed behind it using Explosive Steps. A hundred meters in a single step, covered in an instant.
However, the Dark Demonic Ape reacted quickly as well. It was a top-tier seventh-level magical beast with formidable combat instincts. Its thick right arm swept backward, reaching to grab Andrew.
Faced with that grasp, Andrew's expression remained unchanged. His saber moved, slashing toward the ape's arm with a strike that seemed slow but was actually fast. Azure light flowed over the blade, its battle-qi contained without being released, displaying his extraordinary control. This was the result of his breakthrough. Before last night, he could have accomplished this with his full effort, but never as effortlessly as he did now.
Unaware of how terrifying the slash was, the Dark Demonic Ape continued its motion. A blink later, the blade struck its right arm.
Swish!
With a soft sound, the ape's nearly two-meter-long arm was sliced off like tofu.
Andrew was not surprised by the strike. The power of fusion battle-qi was absolutely terrifying. Even he did not know its limits. Especially with lightning and fire fused together, even sixth-level battle-qi was far beyond what a seventh-level magical beast could withstand.
Even an eighth-level magical beast would be injured if that hit it. I wonder if it could break through a level nine magical beast's defenses... Andrew thought.
After severing the ape's arm, Andrew did not press his advantage. Instead, he retreated.
He did not consider the Dark Demonic Ape a threat. His main purpose in fighting it was to train himself, so he would not kill it so quickly.
"They say a Dark Demonic Ape goes berserk after being injured, and its strength skyrockets along with it. Come on!"
The aura of the ape that had lost an arm faltered. Then it actually picked up its right arm, brought it to its mouth, and began tearing into it with its teeth. It soon gnawed the enormous arm clean, leaving only a white bone.
"Roar!"
The ape waved the bone and bellowed. Beneath its feet, rocks and trees were crushed to pieces, and a powerful current of air appeared out of nowhere around it.
It's gone berserk. Its aura is even more savage, and darkness elements are actually spilling out of its body. Is this an innate ability?
Not far away, Andrew quietly watched its transformation, speculating.
The Dark Demonic Ape had indeed gone berserk. Afterward, its body grew by half, reaching over four meters, nearly five. Its aura had more than doubled in strength. The only thing unchanged was its eyes. No, its eyes had changed too: they were even fiercer than before.
"Roar!"
With an enraged roar, the Dark Demonic Ape used its right arm bone as a weapon, swinging it in a full arc and smashing it toward Andrew. Striking from above with its immense strength, this blow carried tremendous force and could not be underestimated. A tremendous whistle tore through the air, generating a strong wind out of nowhere.
Andrew hesitated a little. Should he meet it head-on or dodge?
I can't dodge. I want to feel how strong it is! In an instant, Andrew made his decision.
He raised his azure saber. The five-foot blade met the white bone club without hesitation. Both sides abandoned all other techniques and speed, beginning a contest of strength alone.
Clang!
With a sharp ringing sound, Andrew was sent flying by the Dark Demonic Ape's overwhelming force. His feet plowed a deep furrow through the earth.
What incredible strength. As expected of a top-tier seventh-level magical beast. In terms of strength, even a ninth-level warrior probably couldn't compare! Andrew thought. This time, he had truly experienced a magical beast's innate gift for strength.
The Dark Demonic Ape pressed its advantage, leaping above Andrew and smashing down hard once more. In its eyes, Andrew was an enemy it would fight to the death. Kill him and eat him-that was the Dark Demonic Ape's goal.