Chapter 156: A Blow of Rushing Waves

"Everyone, don't worry." The man on the Watchtower smiled to reassure the crowd, "Everyone is safe and sound this time, and the harvest is quite bountiful; we've brought back several pieces of prey!"

"Really? Are there really several pieces of prey?" the crowd asked in disbelief.

"Hehehe, once they get closer, you'll know," another person on the Watchtower responded with a smile.

Not long after, the Hunting Team, fully loaded with prey, returned to the Zhai successfully.

Seeing this, the people of the Lu Family Stockade finally set their hanging hearts at ease; that the Hunting Team could return safely was already the best news possible.

In contrast, the people from the Li Family Fort saw this scene with eyes full of shock and envy.

Lu Guohao scanned the crowd and took a deep breath.

The Zhai's population was now approaching one thousand, with over one hundred able-bodied young men, and even more if counting the women.

If they continued to use the method of equal distribution, it would undoubtedly foster a culture where some people get something for nothing.

It was time to announce the principle of distribution according to work; this would both ensure fairness and fully mobilize everyone's enthusiasm.

In the crowd, Lu Yu quietly slipped away. Seeing his father lead everyone back safely and bring back quite a bit of prey, a look of relief also appeared on his face.

He understood that he could only help everyone for a time, but could not protect them for a lifetime; it was naturally best if everyone could be self-reliant.

Lu Yu returned to the martial arts practice field. Wang Liang saw him return and asked with concern, "Did anything happen to anyone?"

Lu Yu shook his head.

Wang Liang smiled slightly and said, "With so many weapons you provided, plus so many people traveling together, even if we encountered an Intermediate-level Fierce Beast, I expect we could safely retreat."

"That's right." Lu Yu also responded with a smile, then changed the subject, "Wang Shu, I plan to go venture into the Weixian Qu tomorrow."

"You want to go to the Weixian Qu?" Wang Liang was slightly startled.

"Yes, I want to go gain some experience, and if it's convenient, I'll go to Yongan City to look around and see if I can buy some Blood Qi Pills," Lu Yu explained.

Nowadays, the money and Experience Value gained from killing a Low-level Fierce Beast were pitifully small.

If he wanted to obtain more resources, he had to challenge Intermediate-level Fierce Beasts, or even Advanced Fierce Beasts.

Wang Liang was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded and said, "What you say makes sense. Our Zhai, let alone compared to Yongan City, even compared to the Zhou Family Fort, has a significant gap. You really should go out and gain some experience."

"However," he pondered for a moment, then continued, "you can be careful in the area between the Zhai and Yongan City, that's fine. But if you go further north, you must be extra cautious."

"Does Wang Shu mean that going north might lead to encountering Advanced Fierce Beasts?" Lu Yu asked hurriedly.

"Not just Advanced Fierce Beasts."

A deep wariness appeared in Wang Liang's eyes, "The few Beast Tides that have erupted in the past mostly came from that direction.

Among them were not only Advanced Fierce Beasts, but also many Elite-level Fierce Beasts. There are even rumors that a Commander-level Fierce Beast is lurking in that area.

Even those C-Class Awakened in Yongan City can only flee in a sorry state when they encounter a Fierce Beast of that level."

"Commander-level Fierce Beast..." Lu Yu gasped.

A Fierce Beast of this level usually stands over ten meters tall, its entire body's skin as hard as iron, making it difficult even for large-caliber artillery shells to blast open, and its speed is terrifyingly fast.

It is no exaggeration to say that a single Commander-level Fierce Beast possesses the terrifying strength to destroy a medium-sized city.

"That's right."

Wang Liang nodded in confirmation, "Fierce Beasts of this level usually lurk and do not appear, but once they do, the consequences are unimaginable.

Because when it appears, it is often not acting alone, but with numerous Elite-level Fierce Beasts in tow, and even Advanced Fierce Beasts can only serve as cannon fodder at such times. But there is no need to be overly worried."

He said with a bitter smile, "Fierce Beasts of this level generally don't look down on a small Zhai like ours, and the same goes for Yongan City; those medium-sized cities are their targets."

Lu Yu didn't know how to respond for a moment. It was a case of "when the lips are gone, the teeth are cold"; if those medium-sized cities were breached, it wouldn't be long before small cities became the next target for the Fierce Beasts.

Once a small city fell, a Zhai like his own would naturally be hard-pressed to escape the same fate.

"Besides that, Yongan City is not like the Zhou Family Fort; the forces there are intricate and complex. You must be careful, especially with those Awakened; their temperaments are fickle, and some no longer even consider us ordinary people as their own kind. So, it's best to stay far away from them."

"Yes, Wang Shu, I will be careful." Lu Yu nodded repeatedly.

In his heart, however, he secretly wondered how Wang Shu would react if he knew that he had already begun to view those Awakened as his rivals.

Late at night, the surroundings were deathly silent, and his family downstairs had long since entered dreamland.

Lu Yu took a shower and sat by the bed. He was setting off early tomorrow morning, so tonight he naturally had to try to break through his Realm, and it would be best if he could also improve his martial arts.

He looked at his attribute panel:

Realm: Ming Jin

Level: 15

Constitution: 507.54

Strength: 549.71

Agility: 396

Spirit: 251.02

Potential Point:

Experience Value: 85

The improvement of two Lightness Skill Secret Manuals and the Basic Palm Technique had increased his Agility attribute by nearly 80 points, and his Strength and Constitution attributes had also each increased by over ten points.

As for Experience Value, because he had killed Wang Dezhi, it had increased by nearly 70 points.

Lu Yu took a cigarette case out of his pocket; this was naturally the Space Item he had obtained from Wang Dezhi.

Last night, he had already taken everything inside out to count, but unfortunately, he hadn't found any trace of a Secret Manual, which was truly a bit regrettable.

He took out all six bottles of Middle Grade Blood Qi Pills from the cigarette case.

Among the six bottles of Blood Qi Pills, one had already been used, leaving a total of 56 Middle Grade Blood Qi Pills.

After Lu Yu consumed all these Blood Qi Pills, the value of his Potential Point instantly climbed to 【points】, and breaking through to the An Jin Realm would certainly be a sure thing.

Lu Yu's gaze fell on the Skill column, and after pondering for a moment, he decided to start with his palm technique.

After all, unarmed martial arts provided the most bonuses to body attributes; other martial arts, such as the Iron Cloth Shirt, Soul Extinguishing Finger, and several weapon martial arts, could wait until tomorrow when he had saved up enough Experience Value to improve them.

"Then let's upgrade Pigua Palm first." After the sparring session with Wang Liang this morning, his Basic Palm Technique had already been raised to level 13.

Therefore, he only consumed one point of Experience Value to raise Pigua Palm to the Entry Realm.

Accompanied by a faint, warm current flowing through his body, a vague memory also appeared in Lu Yu's mind.

【Pigua Palm: First Glimpse of the Path, Traits: Lightness Level 1, Agile Level 1】

Unlocking two traits in one go made Lu Yu feel quite surprised.

These two traits, one increasing the Agility attribute and the other increasing attack speed, perfectly complemented the Pigua Palm's style of using speed to overcome slowness and being flexible and ever-changing.

Lu Yu invested another point of Experience Value, and this time the proficiency increased by about one-half.

After consuming another point of Experience Value, the proficiency reached the Small Success Realm, but no new traits were unlocked.

Consuming 3 more points of Experience Value, a strange sensation surged into his heart.

【Pigua Palm: Entering the Hall, Traits: Lightness Level 3, Agile Level 3, Great Cleave and Hang Level 1】

【Great Cleave and Hang: For every level the skill increases, the power of Pigua Palm increases by an additional 30%.】

"A trait that increases palm technique power?" Lu Yu thought to himself, the name of this trait was truly tailor-made for Pigua Palm.

Moreover, if it were raised to the Consummation Realm, the power could increase by 90%, almost doubling it.

After consuming another 15 points of Experience Value, Pigua Palm finally reached the Consummation Realm.

【Pigua Palm: Consummation, Traits: Lightness Level 5, Agile Level 5, Great Cleave and Hang Level 3, Surging Wave Strike Level 1】

"Surging Wave Strike?" Lu Yu's eyes lit up instantly.

If nothing went wrong, this should be an active skill; just hearing the name made it feel exceptionally powerful.