Chapter 10: Combat Is the Shortcut

"Continue!"

Li Mu swung his long sword fiercely, shaking off the fresh blood from its blood groove, and his whole being was filled with soaring fighting spirit.

"Slash!"

"Slash!!"

"Slash!!!"

In the deep, shadowy forest, a dazzling flash of blade light suddenly flickered into view!

After the blade flash, a surge of blood light rose!

Li Mu practices the Eight‑Nine Profound Skill himself, and his internal Qi storage far surpasses that of other cultivators of the same rank.

Moreover, there is also the double augmentation of the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique.

This makes Li Mu's combat experience growth speed practically soar.

Deep within the forest, crisp system notification sounds kept echoing at Li Mu's ears.

【Ding!】

【System identified: Host successfully used the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique to kill a second‑rank Demon Soldier Steel‑back Boar, triggering Tenfold Heavenly Dao Blessing.】

【Congratulations, Host, you have successfully gained ten combat experience insights!】

【Ding!】

【System identified: Host successfully used the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique to kill a fourth‑rank Demon Soldier Snow‑Mastiff Demon Dog, triggering Tenfold Heavenly Dao Blessing!】

【Congratulations, Host, you have gained ten combat experience insights!】

"..."

The sun set in the west.

The crimson sunset filtered through the leaves, scattering tiny specks of light.

Under a large tree, Li Mu's body was splattered with bloodstains.

However, these were all the blood of beasts,

【Ding!】

【System identified: Host successfully used the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique to kill a fifth‑rank Demon Soldier, triggering Hundredfold Heavenly Dao Blessing.】

【Congratulations, Host, you have gained one hundred combat experience insights!】

The system notification sounded again in his mind, filling Li Mu's eyes with excitement.

Not bad, not bad!

I've been hacking away for almost half a day, and finally landed a big burst!

"Boom!"

A flood of combat experience insights surged again in his mind, and the second layer of Seven-Absolute Blade Qi stored in Li Mu's body fully coalesced.

Even the third blade Qi manifested a complete outline.

And that's after just one day of training!

To have refined the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique to this level after only a day, Li Mu was already extremely satisfied with the result.

Such a terrifying cultivation speed!

Even the original creator of the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique might not have been this fast.

Of course!

The reasons that excited Li Mu were not limited to that!

What surprised Li Mu even more was that the Heavenly Dao Treasure Scroll was absurdly perverse, wasn't it?

It can transfer martial techniques, not to mention the side effects of pills!

Crucially, I have gone through dozens of battles of all sizes.

Yet Li Mu's body, although his Qi is nearly depleted, feels no fatigue at all; his stamina remains immensely abundant!

Actually, Li Mu had noticed this situation last night.

At that time, he thought that after pulling an all‑night cultivation of the Eight‑Nine Profound Skill, he was still a hundred times more energetic the next morning, with nothing wrong.

But then Li Mu didn't take it seriously, merely assuming he was just over‑excited after arriving at the Ziyang Sect.

Until today, after experiencing so many battles in succession.

Only then could Li Mu finally confirm that it wasn't his own vigor, but that the Heavenly Dao Treasure Scroll was just too powerful!

The key is...

The Heavenly Dao Treasure Scroll that Li Mu observed can turn events that were unfavorable to him within a period of time into never having happened, only allowing favorable outcomes to become reality—a massive reality‑bending ability that is merely the tip of the iceberg of all its powers.

If, as his cultivation continues to advance, his control over the Heavenly Dao Treasure Scroll keeps improving,

then the Heavenly Dao Treasure Scroll, fully mastered and developed by himself, would become terrifying to an unimaginable degree; Li Mu truly dares not even imagine it.

Li Mu clapped his hands in satisfaction, and when he turned his head back, he discovered.

He found that more than ten beast corpses had been piled by Li Mu into a small hill.

Crimson‑blood Demon Ape!

Once enraged, its fur all over turns blood‑red!

This is far stronger than the steel‑back boars Li Mu previously encountered, far, far stronger!

Moreover, these Crimson‑blood Demon Apes have already reached fifth‑rank Demon Soldier level!

Standing before the corpse, Li Mu used the tip of his blade to pry open the ape's skull, extracted the Demon Crystal, and crushed it outright.

【Ding!】

【System identified: Host absorbed a fifth‑rank Demon Soldier's Demon Crystal, triggering Tenfold Heavenly Dao Blessing.】

【Congratulations, Host, you have gained Tenfold Harvest!】

In an instant.

The tenfold Demon Crystal energy after the Heavenly Dao Blessing instantly turned into a stream of heat that surged into Li Mu's dantian.

Afterwards, Li Mu again followed the same method, extracting and absorbing the Demon Crystals remaining from the red‑blood Demon Ape.

Although this time there was no Hundredfold Gain, it still greatly increased Li Mu's strength.

Yet even so, Li Mu was not satisfied with it.

After absorbing the last piece of Demon Crystal, Li Mu murmured.

"The demon beasts I hunted today number at least fifty or sixty."

"Such massive Demon Crystal energy, even without counting the boost from the Heavenly Dao Blessing,"

"for ordinary cultivators, not only breaking through a minor realm, but even two minor realms would be more than enough,"

"but for me, I still haven't broken through the Fifth Grade Qi Refining Realm?"

Li Mu stroked his chin, carefully analyzing his current situation.

"Moreover, this situation is not only reflected in the Demon Crystals; the pill I took last night shows the same effect!"

No wonder, Yang Jian, by cultivating the Eight Nine Profound Art, ultimately achieved sainthood in his mortal body!

Simply by cultivating the Eight Nine Profound Art, the Qi and true energy required for each minor realm are eight to nine times that of ordinary cultivators.

Fortunately, Li Mu's strength also multiplied!

As for how strong he truly is, Li Mu still has no clear notion.

He only has a vague feeling.

For ordinary martial artists, they might have to exhaust all their abilities, even form a team, to deal with demon beasts of the same realm.

But for Li Mu?

Not to mention steel‑backed boars of the same realm; even a red‑blood Demon Ape a tier above his own cultivation.

For Li Mu, they are also the kind that get sliced dead in a single strike!

"It seems I still need to test just how far my combat power has reached,"

"and see what kind of weapon I can exchange for with my contribution points from the sect,"

Li Mu glanced at the long blade in his hand.

He saw the blade's edge already beginning to curl.

Originally, Li Mu planned to wait until he broke through a great shackles and reached the Concentration Realm.

Then see if he could use his ten‑thousandfold Heavenly Dao Blessing, with overwhelming aura, to draw out the Second Son God Yang Jian's Three‑Point Double‑Edge Blade.

After all, he had already mastered the Eight Nine Profound Art.

If he could get another Three‑Point Double‑Edge Blade in his hand, Li Mu would be laughing awake even in his dreams.

But this ordinary long blade brought from the secular world clearly couldn't last until then.

"Let's call it a day!"

Li Mu casually sheathed the blade at his waist and prepared to head back home.

Only, Li Mu did not know that

shortly after he left, a rustling sound came from the nearby bushes behind.

Soon, Qiu Ning Shui emerged from it.

Seeing the demon ape corpses piled into a small hill, Qiu Ning Shui was stunned.

"Last time I encountered two red‑blood Demon Apes, I could only temporarily evade their blades."

"But here, it's not just so many Demon Ape corpses."

"From the wounds, these over ten Demon Apes were all killed by the same person, each with a single slash!"

"Sss…"

Thinking of this, Qiu Ning Shui sharply inhaled a cold breath.

"These red‑blood Demon Apes are Fifth Grade Demon Soldiers!"

"Even a Six Grade Lian Qi Realm cannot achieve such clean, instant kills."

"When did Longtan Peak ever have such a Heavenly Champion?"

Qiu Ning Shui, seeing that all these ten‑plus Demon Apes were each beheaded with a single slash, had eyes full of excitement.

"Never imagined!"

"Our Longtan Peak truly hides dragons and crouching tigers!"

"With Senior Sister Yao and this mysterious master present, our Longtan Peak will have the strength to fight Xuan Yue Feng in this Four Peaks Grand Competition."

"Moreover, I observe the wounds on these Demon Apes."

"It seems this mysterious master also practices a killing‑focused sword technique."

"Only unsure whether this mysterious master practices the Seven‑Absolute Sword Technique!"

"If so, should we meet him later, we could ask him to guide junior brother Li Mu."

Qiu Ning Shui thought excitedly, then glanced at the gradually dimming sky.

"The sun is about to set!"

"Senior Sister Zi Yuan also instructed me to take junior brother Li Mu to the new cave residence."

"I wonder how far he's grasped the Seven‑Absolute Sword Technique?"

Determined, Qiu Ning Shui also headed up the mountain.

……

On the way back, Li Mu was not idle.

He swept through all the demon beasts encountered along the way like a locust swarm with a single strike.

As for why it's a sweep?

Sometimes, Li Mu only hears a rustling sound coming from the bushes behind him.

Li Mu doesn't even bother to look, and casually delivers a Slash with the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique.

The opponent hasn't even shown its head yet, and is already eliminated instantly.

Keep walking, keep killing!

When Li Mu finally reaches the foot of Longtan Peak, he sees the third layer of the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique about to break through.

Li Mu hesitates, wondering whether to go back and grind another wave of experience.

At that moment, a noise suddenly arises behind him,

Li Mu follows the sound, looks, and his expression freezes, quite surprised.

"Qiu Ning Shui?"

Seeing Qiu Ning Shui emerge from the bushes, Li Mu's expression grows increasingly odd.

This Qiu Ning Shui, why is she the same as 'Zhang Wei'?

No matter where I am, I always run into her!

"Li Mu?"

"Why are you here!"

The moment she sees Li Mu, Qiu Ning Shui is equally astonished.

Originally, Qiu Ning Shui had planned to go to Li Mu's residence to find him!

She never expected to meet him here.

But quickly, Qiu Ning Shui figured out the reason.

It seems Li Mu couldn't fully comprehend the Seven-Absolute Sword Technique, so he wanted to use Yu Lao's suggestion of gaining insight through real combat.

As for why they met here.

Probably because Li Mu's junior disciple is descending the mountain for the first time, still fearful of hunting demonic beasts, and thus hesitates here.

"Li Mu!"

"It's already night, let's go down the mountain together for training next time."

"I'll take you to the cave residence first to look!"

As she speaks, Qiu Ning Shui steps forward, pats Li Mu on the shoulder, thinking with a hint of pride.

Indeed!

A junior disciple just starting out, without me, his senior sister, really still can't manage!

Li Mu also scans Qiu Ning Shui up and down.

Seeing her in such a disheveled state, he nods in understanding.

All that trouble!

This Qiu Ning Shui came specifically to ask me to team up, to be carried along.

Fine!

Qiu Ning Shui is quite nice, now she even wants to take me to the new cave residence!

Next time we go down the mountain for training, I'll just take Qiu Ning Shui along.

"..."

Li Mu follows Qiu Ning Shui, walking toward the direction of the new cave residence.

When the two pass through the plaza,

Li Mu notices that dozens of new disciples have gathered in the plaza, clustering in groups of three to five, chattering about something.

Curious, Li Mu walks over to watch.

In the very center of the crowd stands a massive stone tablet, about two people tall.

This stone tablet wasn't here yesterday; it was just erected here today.

At the top of the tablet is inscribed: "Four Peaks Wind and Cloud Ranking!"