*Boom, boom, boom…* The thunderous roar of the gigantic waterfall echoed through the valley day after day, year after year. The moist mist isolated the small valley from the scorching heat of the outside world. Beneath the cascading silver dragon of the waterfall, a half-naked young man gritted his teeth and clutched a massive black heavy ruler in his hands, continuously slashing at the surging current. Each swing of the black ruler sent water splashing in all directions. His feet were firmly planted on the wooden stake like the roots of a shrub, and a faint yellow aura of combat qi flickered over Xiao Yan’s body. Whenever the water struck his body, a light mist would rise. Slashing the heavy ruler into the water required immense effort, and after standing on the wooden stake for some time, each swing of the heavy ruler now caused his arm muscles to throb with a numbing, excruciating pain.
Gritting his teeth, Xiao Yan’s legs began to weaken. Finally, in the next slash, the fierce current, *bang*, slammed him off the wooden stake and into the lake below.
*Plop.* Emerging from the surface of the lake, Xiao Yan spat out a mouthful of water, shook his dazed head, and then swam towards the shore with a nearly numb body. After reaching the shore, he collapsed onto the cold stone surface, his entire body limp and his muscles aching so much that he didn’t want to move a single inch.
“Here, eat something.” A deliciously roasted fish was offered to him from behind, held up in front of Xiao Yan.
Opening his eyes and taking a deep breath of the aroma, Xiao Yan’s stomach immediately growled. With great difficulty, he moved his body, leaning against a boulder, and took the roasted fish, devouring it hungrily.
The Pharmacist Elder, watching Xiao Yan’s actions, smiled. He glanced at the ten wooden stakes under the waterfall and said, “Not bad, you’ve been able to hold your ground on the third stake for such a long time, and it’s only been five days.”
With a mouth full of food, Xiao Yan could only mumble incoherently.
“Recently, mercenaries have been appearing more frequently around here,” the Pharmacist Elder remarked casually as he sat beside Xiao Yan.
Xiao Yan’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he swallowed the food in his mouth with difficulty. “It seems the Wolf Head Mercenary Corps has noticed something.”
“At their pace, they’ll probably discover this small valley within a month. It seems we need to speed things up,” the Pharmacist Elder said, stroking his chin with a light smile.
“How can we speed up?” Xiao Yan asked, blinking in confusion. His cultivation speed was already quite fast; could it really be accelerated?
“It can indeed be sped up. However, using this method will require a lot of suffering,” the Pharmacist Elder admitted frankly.
“Have I suffered too little these past few days?” Xiao Yan retorted, rolling his eyes.
“Haha, that’s true…” The Pharmacist Elder nodded with a smile, then took out Xiao Yan’s ring and slowly retrieved over a dozen transparent jade bottles. Inside these bottles was a red liquid that looked as thick as blood.
“What is this?” Xiao Yan asked curiously, staring at the unfamiliar substance.
“Blood Burn!” The Pharmacist Elder picked up one of the bottles, gently shook it, and smiled, “I made this by combining twenty-three different fire-attribute medicinal herbs and the blood of three second-grade fire-attribute magical beasts. If we were to rank it, it could be considered a fourth-grade elixir.”
“Fourth-grade?” Xiao Yan’s eyebrows raised. This was the first time he had seen an elixir of this rank with his own eyes.
“What does this thing do?”
“This ‘Blood Burn’ is only effective for those who cultivate fire-attribute combat qi. For those who cultivate water-attribute combat qi, it is as good as poison. When applied to the body, it accelerates the consumption of combat qi, but also accelerates its regeneration. In the constant cycle of consumption and regeneration, your strength will gradually increase.” The Pharmacist Elder smiled, a hint of mischief in his eyes. “But don’t get too excited. As I said, to use it to speed up your cultivation, you must endure significant suffering.”
“What kind of suffering?” Xiao Yan, seeing the Pharmacist Elder’s expression, felt a bit nervous and asked cautiously.
“Extend your hand.” The Pharmacist Elder pulled Xiao Yan’s arm out with a smile and tilted the jade bottle, letting a drop of the red liquid fall onto his arm.
“*Hiss…*” As soon as the red liquid touched his skin, Xiao Yan’s face paled, and he gasped sharply. Cold sweat immediately covered his forehead, and he clenched his teeth, his arm trembling violently.
In Xiao Yan’s perception, the red drop on his arm felt like a blazing flame, constantly releasing a scorching heat, as if his arm was placed on a burning charcoal.
The Pharmacist Elder, seemingly expecting this reaction, smiled lightly and took out a small jade plaque from his ring. He then slowly spread the red liquid, increasing its coverage area.
As the area of the red liquid increased, Xiao Yan’s arm trembled even more violently, and the veins on his arm bulged, looking rather terrifying. The red liquid adhered to his skin, emanating a faint warm energy, and his arm turned increasingly red.
This state lasted for over ten minutes before gradually fading. When the burning sensation on his arm completely subsided, Xiao Yan breathed a sigh of relief, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and, when he looked at the small jade bottles again, his eyes showed a noticeable wariness.
“This stuff… is too terrifying,” Xiao Yan muttered, patting his arm, which was gradually returning to normal temperature. He fixed his gaze on the Pharmacist Elder, his mouth bitter, “You’re not seriously going to make me use this to cultivate, are you?”
“Focus and feel the combat qi flowing in your arm. What changes do you notice?” The Pharmacist Elder smiled, not answering his question directly.
Shrugging, Xiao Yan closed his eyes as instructed and shifted his mind to the meridians in his arm. To his surprise, he found that the combat qi in the left arm’s meridians was not only much stronger than in other meridians but also seemed to contain slightly more energy.
With a mixture of surprise and awe, Xiao Yan slowly opened his eyes, looking at the smiling Pharmacist Elder. After a brief silence, he gritted his teeth and said, “Alright, let’s go! I’ll do it!”
Seeing Xiao Yan nod with determination, the Pharmacist Elder’s smile widened. He had expected that this guy wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation of rapid strength enhancement brought by the “Blood Burn.”
“Lie down. From now on, apply this all over your body once a day. Your cultivation speed should increase by at least another thirty to forty percent,” the Pharmacist Elder said, waving his hand.
Cracking a smile, Xiao Yan stuffed his shirt into his mouth and tightly gripped the crevices in the rock with both hands. Muffled sounds came from his mouth, “Let’s do it!”
Seeing Xiao Yan’s resolute expression, the Pharmacist Elder shook his head helplessly. He tilted the jade bottle, and the red liquid flowed out…
“Ahh…” A wretched, agonizing cry once again filled the valley.
While Xiao Yan was training with all his might, the Wolf Head Mercenary Corps’ search intensified. After losing more than a dozen companions, they finally began to approach the small valley where Xiao Yan was located.
One day, a month later, when Xiao Yan could already last a sufficient amount of time on the eighth wooden stake, a mercenary from the Wolf Head Mercenary Corps inadvertently stumbled into the quiet valley.
Standing at the entrance of the valley, the mercenary stared in shock at the young man training under the waterfall. After a moment, he snapped out of his daze due to the cold wind. A wave of joy surged through his heart.
Without a word, he quickly took out a signal flare from his pocket, but just as he was about to set it off, a sharp gust of wind suddenly hit him head-on.
The force of the wind made the six-star mercenary’s heart skip a beat. He kicked off the ground and quickly retreated.
*Boom!* The black shadow, crashing through the air, slammed heavily into the mud.
Mud flew everywhere, and a giant, somewhat peculiar black iron ruler plunged deeply into the ground.
The mercenary’s pupils contracted as he recognized the odd, black ruler. This unique weapon had become the symbol of the young man they had put a bounty on.
Despite the flying mud obscuring his vision, the experienced mercenary remained calm. He kept retreating, his sharp gaze sweeping his surroundings.
Just as he was about to exit the valley, his heart suddenly tightened, and he dropped to the ground without warning.
*Crack!* As he dropped, a fierce gust of wind whizzed over his head, striking a nearby tree. The tree cracked and snapped in two.
The mercenary, seeing the broken tree, sucked in a cold breath. How much power did it take to cause such damage? Overcoming his shock, the mercenary suddenly pushed off the ground and, like a gecko, sprung towards the jungle.
The fleeing mercenary was quite satisfied with his maneuver. This high-yellow-stage Gecko Crawling Combat Technique had saved his life multiple times. In his experience, few fighters could catch him in the jungle while using this technique.
As he imagined reporting back and claiming the generous bounty, and then having his way with the voluptuous women in the tavern, a pair of feet suddenly appeared in his path.
Halting abruptly, the mercenary looked up in horror and saw a young man with a friendly, smiling face.
“Quite fast, aren’t you…?” The young man smiled, but his pitch-black eyes glinted with icy killing intent, making the mercenary shiver.
Seeing the mercenary’s blank look, Xiao Yan’s lips curled. He raised the massive black ruler and slashed down with all his might. A shrill scream echoed through the forest.
Wiping the blood off the Heavy Ruler indifferently, Xiao Yan glanced at the corpse and licked his lips. A hint of bloodlust appeared on his face. “You wanted to kill me, huh? Alright… from today on, I will annihilate every member of the Wolf Head Mercenary Corps who dares to enter the Magic Beast Mountains. If you want to play, let’s play big.”
“Revenge starts now…”
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