Chapter 30: The First Slaughter

Within the enclosed town, 1,680 aspiring warriors quickly dispersed, beginning their hunt for prey.

“Yang Ge, you’re going to brave this monster-infested town alone?” Standing beside the wall of a dilapidated small supermarket, Luo Feng asked Yang Wu, who solemnly nodded and replied, “Crazy one, this warrior practical exam isn’t just a test; it’s more importantly a trial of courage! When we eventually enter dangerous zones alone, the dangers we’ll face will be ten or even a hundred times greater. If you can’t even handle this monster town without your help, how will you manage in the future?”

Luo Feng nodded, “That’s true. Take care, Yang Ge.”

“Yeah, Crazy, seize the opportunity,” Yang Wu reminded him. “All the monsters here are the weakest H-rank. Where else will you get such a perfect chance to practice your blade against only the weakest monsters?”

“I understand. This is a rare opportunity to hone my sword skills,” Luo Feng smiled and nodded.

“Alright, see you outside the town at dawn tomorrow.” After saying this, Yang Wu carefully glanced around and swiftly dashed away.

Luo Feng also quickly darted into a shadowy spot.

…

Night fell, and along the edge of the enclosed town, large spotlights illuminated it. Much of the town was brightly lit, though many areas remained dim and shadowy.

“According to what the warriors said back in the community, monsters are classified into Soldier Beasts, General Beasts, and Lord Beasts, corresponding to human Warriors, Generals, and War Gods,” Luo Feng stood quietly in a dusty alley, his left forearm wrapped in a hexagonal shield, and his right hand gripping the Blood Shadow Blade.

“The weakest Basic Soldier Beasts, the H-rank monsters, are on par with beginner human warriors.”

“Although there are many monsters in this town, they mainly fall into three categories: the ‘Shadow Cats,’ feline beasts that rely on speed; the ‘Iron-Haired Wild Boars,’ which dominate with immense strength and defense; and the ‘Tiger Mastiff Dogs,’ canine beasts with both incredible speed and power,” Luo Feng scanned the area.

Suddenly, from the ruins of a collapsed two-story building in the distance, a shadow slowly emerged. With his sharp vision, Luo Feng quickly identified it as a beast nearly one and a half meters tall, its fur resembling sharp spines. Its gaping maw revealed two massive fangs that reflected a chilling gleam from the distant spotlight.

An ordinary domestic pig usually stands about sixty to seventy centimeters tall.

This monster was more than twice that height—like a small car.

“Iron-Haired Wild Boar? My first prey will be you.” Luo Feng fixed his gaze on the boar and stepped out from the alley, exposing himself to its view.

“Heh-heh~~”

The Iron-Haired Wild Boar fixed its gaze upon the human warrior wielding shield and blade, releasing an eerie, guttural snarl. Then, its massive, muscular hooves hammered down upon the concrete, sending up a swirling storm of dust. With a gust of foul, blood-tinged wind, it barreled toward Luo Feng—a thundering, unstoppable force, like a runaway armored behemoth hurtling forward at breakneck speed.

Its two sharp, elongated tusks resembled massive curved blades, thrusting directly at Luo Feng.

“Whoosh!” As the boar charged, Luo Feng swiftly dodged to its side. The boar, already at full speed, couldn’t stop in time. Luo Feng’s eyes flashed with coldness, his entire body suddenly unleashing power into his arms. Without hesitation, he slashed the Blood Shadow Blade upward in a swift arc, cleaving the boar’s neck from below.

Plop!

The boar’s head flew off, blood gushed from the severed neck, and the body continued running for over ten meters before crashing down with a loud thud. It twitched for a moment before finally dying.

“Huff… huff…” Luo Feng took a couple of deep breaths. The sight of the beast’s spurting blood stirred unease within him.

Killing a monster…

His first kill. It was indeed a shocking experience.

“No wonder Uncle Wu said many aspirants can’t even display one-tenth of their strength during their first real kill,” Luo Feng reflected on the fight. “My dodge at the start was good, but later… a single upward slash cleanly severed the boar’s head. That was a waste of energy. For an average aspirant, a single strike wouldn’t be enough to decapitate an Iron-Haired Wild Boar.”

Though the boar had strong defenses, that was only in comparison to ordinary aspirants.

Luo Feng’s current strength was already top-tier among intermediate warriors. Fighting this boar was like bullying it.

“As the warrior brothers in Mingyue Community said, fighting monsters shouldn’t be brute force. One must learn to strike their weaknesses.”

“Also, seeing the blood from the boar’s severed neck made my heart tremble. I must get used to it! In the future, I’ll often battle monsters and walk the edge of life and death. If my mental state isn’t solid, I could easily lose my life in a critical moment.” Luo Feng understood that the more crucial the moment, the calmer one must remain.

In fact, Luo Feng’s composure was already quite good. After all, for his first monster kill, many others performed far worse.

Luo Feng approached the severed head, swung his blade—

Pshh!

He sliced off the boar’s left ear and placed it into his backpack. “First one done. Time for the next!” In a flash, Luo Feng vanished into the streets, leaving behind the headless corpse of the Iron-Haired Wild Boar, its blood staining the dusty cement road.

…

Time passed, second by second. Across the enclosed town, bloody battles were unfolding in every corner. Though these H-rank monsters were roughly equal in strength to the aspirants, humans had one significant advantage—intelligence. The weakest H-rank monsters possessed little intelligence, relying only on animal instincts.

Around 8 PM.

On the rooftop of a six-story residential building, two dark figures clashed violently.

Hua!

A flash of cold light. Luo Feng knelt halfway on the platform, the blade of his Blood Shadow Blade faintly stained with blood. The other shadow had been thrown lifelessly onto the rooftop, leaving a trail of blood.

“This Shadow Cat is indeed the fastest. For an H-rank monster, its speed reaches about forty meters per second.” Luo Feng stood and walked over. The Shadow Cat’s corpse lay on the ground, its gray fur covering a small body about half a meter long. Its abdomen bore a terrifying wound, its internal organs sliced open by Luo Feng’s previous strike.

“For ordinary aspirants, this Shadow Cat would pose a real threat. But against me… it’s just unfortunate.” Luo Feng shook his head and sliced off the cat’s left ear.

Luo Feng’s speed far surpassed that of the Shadow Cat.

After all, Luo Feng was already at the level of an intermediate warrior, and even among intermediates, he was top-tier.

“Number five.”

Luo Feng collected the trophy. “Normally, killing three monsters ensures passing the exam. I’ve killed five, so I’m definitely through! Then… from now on, I’ll seriously hone my blade techniques and body movements.” Previously, killing monsters was just for accumulating points. Now, he had enough.

“Now, I’ll use 1,000 kilograms of punch force and 30 meters per second speed. I’ll truly fight these monsters.”

Previously, Luo Feng had simply been overpowering the monsters, fighting opponents of an entirely different level.

Now, he was deliberately holding back his strength to make the fights more balanced, which would better hone his skills. After all, when venturing deep into dangerous zones in the future, he wouldn’t always be fighting monsters a full level weaker than himself.

“Begin!”

Luo Feng stood at the edge of the rooftop, scanning the area below and around.

“Ah? There’s the first one!” He spotted a Tiger Mastiff Dog perched on the rooftop of a dilapidated three-story villa diagonally below. Its spotted, streamlined body stood out clearly. Luo Feng immediately dashed forward, leaping from the rooftop’s edge, soaring over ten meters, and landing heavily on the villa’s top floor with a loud impact that shook the floorboards.

As he rolled upon landing to absorb the shock, Luo Feng immediately sprinted toward the Tiger Mastiff Dog.

“Roar~~” The Tiger Mastiff Dog also lunged forward.

…

A blood-streaked, cold young man wielding a Ghost Moon Blade strode arrogantly down the street.

“I wonder how many monsters Luo Feng has killed,” the young man mused inwardly. He was Wan Dong, a genius recruit of Thunderclap Martial Arts Academy, the only one among the 1,680 aspirants whose strength matched Luo Feng’s. Though three were recruited early, one was a firearms prodigy, not particularly strong physically.

Luo Feng and Wan Dong were the two physically gifted prodigies.

“Hmm?” Wan Dong’s gaze fixed on a spot ahead.

There, a figure was locked in battle with two Shadow Cats. The cats screeched, their claws slashing rapidly while the figure deftly evaded and fought back.

“Luofeng! Killing two Shadow Cats this slowly? You disappoint me,” Wan Dong called out mockingly.

“Chi!” “Chi!”

In near lightning-fast strikes, Luo Feng’s Blood Shadow Blade pierced both cats in quick succession. They rolled to the ground, twitched briefly, and lay still.

“Fast!” Wan Dong was startled, his heart racing. “And his strikes were clean and precise, hitting the cats’ vital spots directly.” From these two strikes, Wan Dong realized that Luo Feng’s strength was not to be underestimated.

“I was planning to play with them a bit longer to continue honing my movements,” Luo Feng muttered, looking at the two Shadow Cat corpses. “But that guy’s too annoying. I don’t want him watching me train my techniques.” Luo Feng sliced off both cats’ left ears, placed them in his backpack, and without even glancing at Wan Dong, vanished swiftly into the night.