The Possibility of Obtaining Spirit Veins

Seeing the figure that had suddenly appeared, Liu Bai immediately realized that someone else had set their sights on the same prey as him.

Judging by their clothing, they were likely an adventuring party that had entered the Northern Spirit Plains—one specifically dedicated to capturing Wind Foxes. Otherwise, they would not have come so thoroughly prepared.

Startled by the two people who had suddenly rushed out, the Wind Fox immediately tried to flee. But when it charged toward a patch of bushes behind it, it never expected another two figures to be waiting there with a Great Net...

Seeing the Wind Fox about to charge straight into their trap, all of them revealed delighted smiles.

A living Wind Fox could bring them hundreds of thousands of Spirit Coins. That was a considerable sum.

Yet what none of them expected was that, at the critical moment, a violent whirlwind erupted around the Wind Fox and slammed into the net. Borrowing the recoil, it abruptly changed direction in midair and shot toward Liu Bai.

"Is there really such a good thing?!"

Liu Bai, who had already been considering retreating, was instantly stunned. Had he really succeeded in waiting for his prey without doing anything?

Without the slightest hesitation, Liu Bai shot out his right hand like lightning at the Wind Fox rushing toward him and tapped a finger against its head.

The power of his Great Accomplishment Wind Breaking Finger shattered the Wind Fox's skull with a single strike, killing it instantly.

This sudden turn of events clearly startled the four-person team opposite him. Looking at the Wind Fox on the ground, with a glowing spirit essence already spilling from its body, all of their expressions turned exceptionally ugly.

"Who are you? How dare you steal the prey of our Blood Fiend Adventuring Group?!" A late Spirit Movement Realm youth gripped a blade and shouted angrily at Liu Bai.

"Blood Fiend Adventuring Group?" Liu Bai frowned.

Though he had never heard of this name, an adventuring group certainly had more than four members. In other words, these people were merely one of the teams assigned to capture Wind Foxes. He just did not know how many of them were in the Northern Spirit Plains.

"It cannot be called stealing. I had my eye on this Wind Fox long ago, and you already failed to capture it. If I had not intervened, it would have escaped by now," Liu Bai said flatly.

Although there were four of them, Liu Bai was unafraid and spoke directly.

"Huh, he's just a little brat whose hair hasn't even grown in yet..."

When the four youths saw Liu Bai's immature face, malicious smiles immediately appeared on their faces.

"Tsk, tsk. You're alone, yet you dare steal the prey of our Blood Fiend Adventuring Group. You really are bold." The youth ignored Liu Bai's words and sneered.

"How about this? Leave behind the prey and the Mustard Seed Bracelet on your hand, and we'll let this matter go and allow you to leave!"

Liu Bai narrowed his eyes. It was obvious that they intended to rob him...

Especially when he saw the greed in their eyes as they looked at his Mustard Seed Bracelet, he knew this matter would likely not end peacefully.

"Y-You... you want to rob me?" Facing the four people who had begun to subtly surround him, Liu Bai put on an outwardly calm expression.

"I'll have you know, I'm a student of Northern Spirit Academy. Our two Mentors are here as well, and they're Divine Soul Realm experts!"

Seeing Liu Bai's appearance, the four immediately burst into laughter.

"I know you're a student of Northern Spirit Academy! I also know you came here to train... but didn't your Mentors tell you that encountering a robbery like this is also a form of training?" The youth curled his lip and smiled. "As long as we don't kill you, your Mentors won't interfere."

Or perhaps, since Liu Bai was alone here, they could be even more ruthless. Even if they killed him outright, as long as they left no traces behind, what could Northern Spirit Academy do to them?

Thus, the four of them had no reservations at all.

"If you don't want to suffer, cooperate properly. Otherwise, I don't mind letting you truly experience the cruelty of the wilderness!"

"You!"

Liu Bai looked furious but helpless, and this reaction made the four people opposite him feel even more pleased.

"Tsk, tsk. I love tormenting so-called geniuses. Little brat, do you want a taste?"

Liu Bai's expression stiffened before fear appeared on his face. He removed the Mustard Seed Bracelet from his wrist and walked dejectedly toward the youth.

He looked as though he had accepted his fate...

Seeing this, the youth's smile widened. But as Liu Bai approached, intense killing intent flashed in the depths of his eyes.

Anyone who possessed a Mustard Seed Bracelet surely had an extraordinary background. If they robbed such a person and let him go, he would certainly seek revenge against them.

Therefore, from the moment they saw the Mustard Seed Bracelet on Liu Bai's wrist, they had already decided to kill him and seize his belongings.

Their earlier words had merely been meant to deceive Liu Bai. They feared he would flee as soon as he sensed something wrong. That would truly have been troublesome...

When Liu Bai had already reached him and even extended the Mustard Seed Bracelet in his hand, the youth reached for it with one hand while tightening his grip around the blade in his other hand, ready to slash at any moment.

But to his astonishment, just as he was about to strike, the terror-filled eyes of the young man before him had become as still as a pool without ripples.

With a flick of his wrist, a streak of black light shot from Liu Bai's right palm and slammed viciously into the other man's chest.

At the same time, Liu Bai released the Mustard Seed Bracelet with his left hand. Like a python, he wrapped it around the other man's sword-wielding wrist and snatched the limp blade from his hand.

Whoosh!

The blade shot forth like an arrow, piercing straight through the chest of another completely unprepared man.

Everything happened in the span of a flash. By the time the remaining two reacted, two of their companions had already been killed...

"Run!"

In an instant, the two men who had spent their lives walking on the edge of a blade made the most correct choice. They turned and fled.

From the strength and cunning Liu Bai had displayed just now, the two of them were no match for him at all. Their only option was to escape, report what had happened to their leader, and wait for him to avenge them!

Liu Bai had not expected the two to be so decisive.

Unfortunately, though both were at the Spirit Movement Realm Mid-stage, they apparently had not cultivated any Movement Spiritual Art. Their speed was no match for Liu Bai's.

A crimson spiritual glow emerged beneath Liu Bai's feet. In the next moment, he had appeared behind one of them.

"Ah! Die!"

Hearing the sound of wind tearing behind him, the man knew he could not escape. The last of his ferocity erupted, and he turned around to throw a vicious punch.

"Hmph, courting death!" Liu Bai sneered.

Star Shattering Fist!

Boom!

Liu Bai unleashed the Spirit Grade Low Rank Star Shattering Fist with his Kirin Arm. The instant their fists collided, the man's entire arm was crushed into a pulp by Liu Bai's terrifying fist force.

Then Liu Bai's punch continued forward without obstruction and smashed into his chest, crushing his entire ribcage inward.

Without caring whether the man was dead or alive, Liu Bai activated Blazing Step again after that punch. With several flashes, he caught up to the last person.

"Spare me! Spare me!"

Seeing that he could no longer escape, the last man actually dropped to his knees in a sliding kneel before Liu Bai's stunned eyes and repeatedly kowtowed as he begged for mercy.

This scene truly caught Liu Bai off guard, and he could not help freezing for a moment.

It was in that moment of distraction that the man who had been kowtowing suddenly flipped his palm. A sharp black gleam flashed out in a tricky, vicious arc, slicing directly toward Liu Bai's throat.

A somewhat twisted face entered Liu Bai's field of vision.

In the man's distorted eyes, Liu Bai even saw a warped thrill of vengeance fulfilled...

Clang!

A crisp sound rang out.

The man's delighted expression quickly turned into disbelief, then was completely filled with fear.

He saw a palm that looked fair and delicate gripping the edge of his dagger tightly.

"How is that possible?!"

How could bare flesh face the edge of a sharp blade?

Moreover, this had been his full-force strike. It could probably have pierced through even steel.

Liu Bai's expression darkened. Without further hesitation, he drove a finger through the man's forehead, killing the sneak attacker.

"I was still too careless. I actually hesitated when I saw him surrender..."

But Liu Bai could not entirely be blamed. After all, he had lived for decades in peace in his previous life. Though he constantly reminded himself after transmigrating that he needed to adapt to this cruel world, his ingrained habits still caused unforeseen mistakes at times.

It seemed he would have to be even more vigilant in the future...

He looked at his right hand and saw a thin bloody line across his palm.

Although his Kirin Arm had been modified and his palm had been protected by spiritual energy, blocking the full-force attack of a Spirit Movement Realm Mid-stage cultivator had still left him with a wound.

Liu Bai paid no attention to it. After confirming the man's death, he immediately left and returned to the earlier battlefield.

Of course, before leaving, Liu Bai took the pitch-black dagger as well. He had discovered that these short weapons could often produce unexpected results...

After returning to the battlefield, he found his Mustard Seed Bracelet on the ground and collected the Wind Fox's Spirit Beast Core. Then, after scanning the surroundings and confirming there were no problems, Liu Bai quickly departed.

After moving far from the site of the battle and confirming that no one was following him, Liu Bai found a large tree and leaped into its crown. He used the dense foliage to conceal himself before finally opening his system and checking the notifications.

"Ding, killed one late Spirit Movement Realm cultivator. Obtained 150 Experience Points and 1 Spirit Vein Awakening Point."

"Ding, killed one Spirit Movement Realm Mid-stage cultivator. Obtained 100 Experience Points and 1 Spirit Vein Awakening Point."

"Ding, killed one Spirit Movement Realm Mid-stage cultivator. Obtained 100 Experience Points and 1 Spirit Vein Awakening Point."

"Ding, killed one Spirit Movement Realm Mid-stage cultivator. Obtained 110 Experience Points and 1 Spirit Vein Awakening Point."

After killing four people, he had obtained 460 Experience Points.

Of course, what surprised Liu Bai the most was not that, but the so-called Spirit Vein Awakening Points...

I can obtain Beast Soul Points by killing Spirit Beasts, and Spirit Vein Awakening Points by killing cultivators. Could this be the system's way of changing the fact that I have no Spirit Veins?

This was truly wonderful!

Thinking of this, Liu Bai immediately opened his attribute panel.

Player: Liu Bai

Realm: Spirit Movement Realm Peak

Profession: Spirit Array Master (Level 1 Spirit Array Master)

Spirit Veins: Awakening (4/10)

Cultivation Methods: Blazing Sun Art (Level Four 0/2000); Basic Spirit Array Manual (Great Accomplishment 0/500)

Skills:

Mortal Grade High Rank Wind Breaking Finger (Great Accomplishment); Mortal Grade High Rank Senluo Death Seal (Great Accomplishment); Spirit Grade Low Rank Star Shattering Fist (Initiation 0/100); Spirit Grade Low Rank Blazing Step (Great Accomplishment 0/1500); Spirit-grade High-tier Great Sun Sea Burning Palm (Minor Accomplishment 0/1200)

Arrays:

Flame Serpent Spirit Breaking Array (Great Accomplishment)

Experience Points: 515

Beast Soul Points: 11

It only takes 10 Awakening Points to awaken Spirit Veins... Liu Bai silently speculated.

He guessed that the awakened Spirit Vein would surely be the lowest-grade one Spirit Vein, after which he would have to continue raising its grade. It was the same old game routine. Once he understood this, Liu Bai closed the attribute panel.

His Experience Points had only just exceeded five hundred. Aside from the Basic Spirit Array Manual and Star Shattering Fist, nothing else could be upgraded. Thus, Liu Bai decided to save them for now. Unless something unexpected happened, improving his cultivation was still more important.

Meanwhile, at the location where Liu Bai had killed the Blood Fiend adventuring team, dozens of people had surrounded the area. At the center stood a nearly two-meter-tall burly man in iron armor, staring at the corpses on the ground as a terrifyingly vicious aura radiated from him.

Before the burly man, a man who looked around thirty was examining the corpse on the ground. It was the blade-wielding youth whom Liu Bai had attacked first.

"He died after his chest was pierced in a single blow. His weapon was then taken and used to kill another person..."

After a while, the man rose to his feet and spoke with a grave expression.

"Leader, it seems the attacker was an extremely seasoned adventurer. His actions were decisive, every strike fatal, without the slightest mercy!"

The burly man was Blood Fiend, leader of the Blood Fiend Adventuring Group and a Spirit Wheel Realm Mid-stage expert. Everyone gathered here was an elite member of the Blood Fiend Adventuring Group, while the man inspecting the corpses was Vice Leader Lu Ling, a Spirit Wheel Realm Initial Stage cultivator.

The Blood Fiend Adventuring Group was quite famous in the Northern Spirit Plains. After all, both its leader and vice leader were Spirit Wheel Realm experts. With such strength, if they pledged allegiance to the Nine Domains, they might even be granted the position of city lord.

"One person dared to kill my Blood Fiend's people?" The killing intent on Blood Fiend's face deepened after hearing this.

"Lu Ling, I don't care what methods you use. Find him for me!"

"I will personally crush every bone in his body and let him know the price of laying hands on Blood Fiend's people!"

"Yes, Leader. I'll immediately send people to investigate!" Lu Ling promptly agreed.

He could tell from his leader's tone that Blood Fiend was truly enraged this time. If he failed to handle this matter properly, he would likely bear the brunt of that anger...

Not only was Blood Fiend's name steeped in bloodshed, but his personality was also violent and bloodthirsty. Thus, no one in the Blood Fiend Adventuring Group dared defy his will.