Chapter 10: Mindset Change

Half a day later, Zhang Shen executed the spiritual wolf with a single, decisive strike. The creature was an Acquired 3rd Layer and incredibly cunning. Lurking in the shadows, it hoped to spring an ambush, only to be beheaded by a swift slash from Zhang Shen.

Out of the vast multitude of wolves, save for a very few, all were brought to their knees by Zhang Wu’s smoke. 

The team of four split up, ensuring all were rounded up. The decision to not kill them was strategic. It was far more efficient to herd the wolves back to the city rather than to transport hundreds of lifeless bodies.

The mission, in total, spanned four days, with the majority of the time dedicated to the journey.

Over the subsequent six months, Zhang Shen completed several more tasks for the family. Some were similar to the initial cleansing and extermination mission, while others required hunting down mountain bandits and horse thieves.

These experiences proved valuable to Zhang Shen, and the blood on his blade gradually increased. His initial reluctance gradually shifted toward resolute determination, enhancing the speed and sharpness of his sword.

This transformation in his mindset was mirrored in his swordsmanship.

Zhang Shen’s practice of the Cold Moon Blade Techniques over these six months seemed touched by divine intervention.

He attained complete proficiency in the sixth move, Full Moon Amid Sparse Stars, and the seventh move, Missing Moon Strike. He also made progress with the eighth move.

The Strongest Physical Body System

Host: Zhang Shen

Physical Level: Acquired Stage 9th Layer

Progress: 88%

Cultivation: Acquired Stage 6th Layer 

Progress: 33%

Martial Art Progress: Bright Moon Technique 6th Layer (Complete), Tenfold Power Strike (Complete), Cold Moon Blade Techniques (Progress: 82%), Cloud-Drifting Step (Progress: 93%)

Evaluation: Your body has reached more than halfway through the 9th Layer Acquired Stage. You have shed your former weakness and now stand as a formidable power at this level.

“The family assignments have not hampered my cultivation, on the contrary, it spurred it to a higher pace.”

Zhang Shen realized that although the speed of his cultivation seemed to have slowed down, the progress in his martial skills had intensified. These two aspects reached an equilibrium, ensuring that his accumulated experience points and physical development were not hindered, but rather slightly enhanced.

“I didn’t expect to achieve mastery in the Tenfold Power Strike within half a year. It appears that a formidable physical body offers even greater assistance to the cultivation of this martial skill than I’d initially thought.”

With a swing of his fist, Zhang Shen used the tenth level, causing the air itself to vibrate, resonating with the force of his blow.

“Tenfold Power Strike, if I master all levels, I can unleash an attack carrying the force of ten full power strikes, channeling it through hands and legs. A formidable Acquired technique indeed.”

Zhang Shen had previously speculated that if this technique wasn’t limited solely to being channeled through hands and legs, and could extend the force from the tenth level to any part of the body, then perhaps it could be considered a superior-grade Acquired martial technique.

“No, applying that force to any part of the body is too difficult. It surely transcends the capability of an Acquired martial technique. Perhaps dispersing the force throughout the body could be possible.”

Zhang Shen pondered. If he could distribute the power from the tenth level throughout his body, an enemy would immediately face a retaliatory blow equivalent to ten full-power strikes, transforming the Ten Power Fist from a purely offensive technique into a defensive one.

“Furthermore, maneuvering the force of ten full-power strikes throughout the body could act as body conditioning.”

Zhang Shen felt this idea held great potential, but he decided against immediate experimentation.

“For now, I’ll write this down. Once I’ve developed a more profound understanding of martial arts and have some spare time, I’ll refine the Tenfold Power Strike.”

With his current tight schedule dedicated to cultivation, there was no time to spare.

One day, Zhang Shen embarked on a solo mission, hunting down a rogue martial artist practicing nefarious techniques who was reportedly hiding near Hongyuan City. The information showed this individual was concealed in a swamp on the outskirts of the city.

On his way there, the distinct sound of a skirmish reached his ears. The noise abruptly vanished, seemingly drifting further away.

Zhang Shen’s brows furrowed. The Endless Wilderness bore witness to such brutal violence daily. Ordinarily, he would have steered clear, yet his curiosity nudged him toward the source of the commotion.

Using the Cloud-Drifting Step, Zhang Shen silently trailed the fading sounds.

A heavily injured man was desperately fleeing, with three relentless pursuers hot on his heels.

“Qin Shuang, you can’t escape anymore. Surrender now, and perhaps we’ll allow you a complete corpse,” Wang Zhong taunted as Qin Shuang refused to slow his escape. “It seems you won’t cry till you see your coffin.”

Wang Zhong’s internal energy surged, propelling him forward with enhanced speed until he was almost upon Qin Shuang.

“Meet your end!” With a downward slash of his sword, Wang Zhong left a deep gash on Qin Shuang’s back, his sword severing through the man’s spine and internal organs. hanging on to his last breath.

With a soft thud, a pristine sword pierced through the back of Qin Shuang’s head.

“Hmph, a mere Acquired 5th Layer. You thought relaying on some agile movement would secure your escape a second time?” Wang Zhong spat disdainfully at the lifeless body that had given him a considerable chase. He then retrieved Qin Shuang’s storage bag and turned to his companions.

“Wang Quan, Wang Min, hack him to pieces and offer him as a feast to the beasts.”

His anger was still not appeased, Wang Zhong resented the effort and time he had wasted on this lengthy chase from Jiuchuan City.

“Wouldn’t it have been simpler if you had accepted our Wang family’s deal from the start? But you insisted on refusing. Is the chance of breaking through to the Innate Stage something so easily found? You’re a mindless fool to squander your life for nothing.”

With these bitter words, Wang Zhong eagerly opened the storage bag.

Days ago, Qin Shuang had procured an old map within the Endless Wilderness. Despite diligent attempts to track down the hill documented on the map, he remained unsuccessful.

Puzzled, Qin Shuang sought guidance from the Wang family’s shopkeeper while buying supplies in Jiuchuan City.

Unlike Qin Shuang, a solitary cultivator without a lineage, the shopkeeper of the Wang family quickly discerned that Qin Shuang had stumbled upon an illusion array. This revelation stirred the Wang family’s shopkeeper, who covertly alerted his kin. He attempted to purchase this map for a handful of low-grade spirit stones.

Unfortunately, the shopkeeper’s acting was less than convincing. Sensing something amiss, Qin Shuang promptly declined and hastily departed Jiuchuan City with his map.

The person sent by the Wang family to pursue and seize the map from Qin Shuang was none other than Wang Zhong.

Just as Wang Zhong was admiring the map he took out of the storage bag, a streak of sword light slashed at Wang Quan and Wang Min, who were in the midst of fulfilling Wang Zhong’s order of dismantling Qin Shuang’s body.

Caught off-guard by the ambush, they both responded instantaneously, initiating defensive measures and counterattacks. 

However, Zhang Shen, who had launched the surprise attack, didn’t underestimate them. Even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit, let alone these two individuals, who seemed competent judging their previous movements. One was at the Acquired 5th Layer and one at the Acquired 6th Layer.

Zhang Shen began his assault with the Dark Moon Slash, unleashing his Acquired 6th Layer strength upon Wang Quan. Under the shade of the trees, the Dark Moon Slash was hidden in the shadows. By the time Wang Quan noticed the sword light, the sword was already at his neck. With a swift motion, a severed head was launched into the air.

“Wang Quan!” Wang Min, his eyes wide with anger, directed his dual maces at Zhang Shen’s head.

The whistling wind echoed the exceptional force behind his attack, yet Zhang Shen remained unfazed, meeting the maces head-on with his sword.

‘Full Moon Slash!’

The Cold Moon Blade, a top-grade Acquired artifact, was far too overwhelming for the low-grade Acquired weapons. Moreover, the Cold Moon Blade technique, renowned for its ferocity and supremacy, was in perfect harmony with the Cold Moon Blade.

With a single strike, Wang Min saw only a blinding white light, his dual maces shattered, and a gory slash ran from his abdomen to his forehead, exposing a grisly sight of white bone and bloody flesh.

Having dispatched the two, Zhang Shen didn’t skip a beat, pivoting to block an oncoming attack. A white sword was thrust directly toward the Cold Moon Blade.