Chapter 22: Leaving the Wilderness

“You are engaged in a fierce battle with a horde of Fierce Beasts. Your Physical Body is slightly strengthened. Proficiency in ‘Nine Leaps Continuous Steps’ has increased. Comprehension of Saber Technique has improved.”

“Your body is in a state of extreme eruption. Physical Body slightly enhanced. Battle Saint Armor continues to amplify.”

Battle Saint Armor: Your body will be covered in a special battle garment.

Defense +104% (originally 100%)

Other attributes +42% (originally 40%)

Defense increased by four percentage points, and other attributes also increased by two percentage points.

Moreover, when Jiang Yan is in a combat state, the amplification of the Battle Saint Armor can temporarily increase without limit.

After being knocked back by several Third Rank Fierce Beasts, Jiang Yan simply patted the dust off his body and charged forward again.

His body continued to burn hot, the battle garment rustling on him. Golden streams of light weaved through the beast horde. Amidst the flashing saber gleams, one Second Rank Fierce Beast after another fell to the ground, with many Third Rank ones among them.

“Your comprehension of Saber Technique has slightly improved.”

“Battle Saint Armor has undergone minor evolution.”

Boom!

Several giant beasts before him were sent flying, crashing into a nearby building. The building instantly shattered, opening a large hole and teetering precariously.

Another ten days passed.

[System Log Updated]

“You engaged in intense combat with a Digging Bear.”

“Your Physical Body slightly improved. Your comprehension of Saber Technique slightly increased.”

“Your body has broken through its limits! Heaven Rewards Diligence activated. Congratulations, your Realm has broken through to Blood Coagulation Perfection.”

“Ha!”

Jiang Yan’s saber gleam blazed brilliantly. The 20% amplification from [Blade Bearer] combined with the 45% amplification to other attributes from [Battle Saint Armor], and [Demon Scale] concentrated all attributes into strength. Countless mighty forces gathered at the tip of his saber.

A streak of Saber Qi, bright enough to illuminate the world and purge all, stretched across the sky. A hurricane swept up dust from the wasteland, and the sky was blotted out by a vast expanse of Saber Qi. The late-stage Third Rank Digging Bear was caught in the terrifying storm; its frantic, unwilling roars were of no avail.

Jiang Yan sheathed his saber. A mangled bear carcass collapsed on the ground.

[Host]: Jiang Yan

[Talent]: Battle Saint Armor (Awaiting Evolution)

[Realm]: Blood Coagulation Perfection

[Martial Skills]: (Unranked) ‘Basic Saber Technique’ Perfection

(Yellow Grade Low) ‘Wild Bull Strength’ Perfection

(Yellow Grade Advanced) ‘Burst Step’ Perfection

(Mystic Grade Advanced) ‘Nine Leaps Continuous Steps’ Perfection

[Traits]: Heaven Rewards Diligence (Destined) Truth of Desperation (Blue) Haste (Blue) Wind Riding (Blue) Blade Bearer (Purple) Life and Death Moment (Orange) Demon Scale (Purple)

[Special]: Blade Momentum (Can break through to Saber Intent)

“What exactly is Saber Intent?”

Over these days, the System Log constantly reminded him of his improving comprehension of Saber Technique. Jiang Yan indeed felt himself wielding his saber with increasing ease and proficiency, yet he still hadn’t touched the threshold of the legendary Saber Intent.

One could even say there was still a considerable distance between him and the Realm of Saber Intent.

In less than a month, his Realm had broken through from Body Tempering Middle Stage to Blood Coagulation Perfection, yet he hadn’t even touched the threshold of Saber Intent. This made Jiang Yan even more curious about how mysterious the legendary Saber Intent truly was.

Jiang Yan walked out of Ruin No. 56.

During these days, he had encountered countless Fierce Beasts here, from unranked wild monsters below to some terrifying Sixth and Seventh Rank Fierce Beasts he had seen.

Jiang Yan still vividly remembered a Devouring Sky Beast he observed from afar three days ago. Its size was comparable to a tall building, its ferocious pupils seemed to hold the remains of countless corpses, and its brutal Aura pressed down on his chest, making it hard to breathe.

That kind of existence, merely catching a glimpse of it was enough to leave a lifelong impression.

Jiang Yan had left that area without any hesitation back then and hadn’t set foot there since.

With his current strength, encountering that Devouring Sky Beast would be nothing more than a snack for it, with absolutely no chance of resistance.

Fortunately, that colossal creature hadn’t noticed him. Otherwise, Jiang Yan was certain that despite the Devouring Sky Beast’s massive and cumbersome appearance, if it truly wanted to hunt prey, it would be an effortless task.

Putting these thoughts aside, Jiang Yan began packing up to return to Linjiang City.

The Wilderness had poor signal, and over the past few days, Jiang Yan had tried several times to send messages to Uncle Wang to let him know he was safe, but none had gone through.

With the College Entrance Exam approaching, it was time for him to bid a temporary farewell to the Wilderness.

Taking one last look at the place where he had survived for nearly a month, Jiang Yan felt no attachment. He picked up the black bag and left.

The black bag was bulging, but it couldn’t possibly hold all the gains Jiang Yan had made over these days.

During this time, he had focused on battling Fierce Beasts, only collecting materials from particularly rare ones. Thus, everything in the bag was valuable, likely fetching a considerable number of Star Coins if sold.

Meanwhile, in Linjiang City.

With only two days left until the College Entrance Exam, senior high school students had long stopped attending classes, staying at home to prepare for the exam.

As a homeroom teacher, Wang Zhong was naturally free at home. At this moment, his brows were furrowed, the lines on his face clearly visible, and his worried expression was hard to conceal.

Looking at the conversation from ten days ago in the chat box, Wang Zhong’s anxious heart grew even more troubled.

“Kid, please don’t let anything happen~”

Wang Zhong pinched the bridge of his nose, placed his phone on the coffee table, and lay down on the sofa, feeling somewhat exhausted.

…

“Jin Beast hide? Young man, where did you encounter a Jin Beast?”

“And Longevity Greenery—this is a treasure that can prolong life…”

Inside the exchange, a merchant exclaimed repeatedly, his eyes gleaming with greed as he looked at the contents of Jiang Yan’s black bag, praising them endlessly.

The items Jiang Yan had poured out of his bag were all of the highest quality, rare treasures.

Many people noticed the commotion and gathered around, pointing and commenting on the extraordinary treasures on the ground.

“The Jin Beast is a Fierce Beast known for its defensive capabilities, and it’s scarce in number. Its hide is extremely rare. This kid is incredibly lucky to have come across one.”

“And that Longevity Greenery—I heard it can be dried and used as medicine, with the effects of prolonging life and repairing old injuries. It coexists with only a few Fierce Beasts and is exceptionally rare. How did this kid manage to find it?”

“And this…”

A bag full of treasures—these were Jiang Yan’s gains over the past month. Combined with his good luck, the items he had obtained were truly enviable.

Jiang Yan could clearly sense that several malicious gazes from the surroundings were now fixed on him.

He remained unfazed. His current strength allowed him to look down upon these Wilderness Hunters, whose abilities were generally only at the first or second tier.

Moreover, he would soon enter the city, so there was no need to worry about any mishaps.

“Young man, how about I give you ten million for all these items combined?”

The merchant asked with a forced smile.

Jiang Yan remained silent, simply staring calmly at the merchant’s face.

The merchant chuckled awkwardly. “Uh, well, the price is negotiable.”

Hah, ten million? This cunning merchant was truly making a clever calculation, thinking he could acquire this entire bag of treasures for just ten million.

“Make way! Make way!”

A hurried voice rang out from the crowd.

A short figure in a black robe squeezed through the congested throng, waving frantically upon spotting Jiang Yan and shouting:

“Don’t sell it! Whatever you do, don’t sell!”