In a random cave.
Su Yang sat in front of a burning fire. ZZZ! He cooked a leg of a chicken. Its feathers and skin were peeled off messily. He spat out after taking a bite from the black, burnt leg. "It had skin left on it." He groaned and pulled out a cooked feather from his mouth.
’I’m not good at skinning an animal.’ He gritted his teeth. In his past life nor in his current life had he done such a thing, and currently, he was a noble clan member where even his dressing was done by maids, much less cooking.
"Killing is easy, but butchering..." He threw the meat away and pulled out a chicken carcass from his storage pouch. It had been skinned roughly, and one leg was already missing. He tore another one. "Only if my cheat helped in this as well." He sighed while tearing the feathers from the leg piece. Then he used a rock to remove the skin from it and began cooking it over the fire.
He had killed a few chickens a few minutes ago, and the sounds from his stomach caused him to stop and prepare his breakfast.
"If only I still had Blood Strengthening Pills." He lamented as he took a bite of the newly cooked leg piece. It was a bit black but golden on the edges. "Should be good enough for eating." He nodded.
Then he threw up after a bite.
"Cough... It’s still bitter." He shook his head.
A few hours later...
"Finally." He grinned with a bit of water in his eyes. He bit into a large, golden-coloured chicken piece. "I managed to cook properly."
It wasn’t cooking that was tough for him; it was flaying. He wasted much of his time on this. He ate his fill happily and cleaned his hands. "Good, now let’s cultivate martial techniques."
He stood up and stretched his body to make it more flexible. "Now, cultivation techniques are used for improving realms, while martial techniques are used for increasing combat power."
Within the same realm, it’s always someone with better mastery of martial techniques who wins the battle. The realm is the foundation, while martial techniques determine the true combat strength.
He pulled out the Undying Phoenix Art. He read it once more. "Hmm, the companion martial techniques are Undying Phoenix Claw, Undying Phoenix Fist, Undying Phoenix Sword Style, and Undying Phoenix Wing Step."
’Practise all and leave the sword one for later.’ He decided what to master. He left out the sword technique as he lacked a weapon to use it. Without a proper blade, how could he train it?
He then took a deep breath and recalled details about Phoenix Fist. He threw a punch in the air.
Boom!
Wind blew due to his insane power.
"I’m not using my full power." He muttered as his thighs bent instinctively. It was his cheat kicking in. He focused and rotated his back, pressed his toes and feet into the ground, and pushed his legs down. Taking strength from his lower body, he then concentrated it into his fist and punched into the air.
Bang!
The sound was louder this time. His body lurched as he stumbled.
’Not good.’
He estimated he had wasted more than 70% of his power. And he hadn’t used Blood Qi to begin with.
"This martial technique is a must." He mumbled as he straightened up, exhaled, and went back to try again.
His cheat kicked in.
After a few hours...
"Now..." Su Yang poured his Undying Phoenix Blood Qi into his fist when it was at the extreme end and punched forward.
Bang!
KRAAAAH!
A white Phoenix materialised behind him, a claw wrapped around his fist as it connected with the wall.
Bang!
Crack!
The wall began to shatter, with cracks extending from the spot of impact to the top, and smoke appeared as a burnt smell filled the air.
"With this power, I think I can match a Blood Qi Great Perfection warrior." He nodded to himself.
This was why he wanted to learn it. When one cultivates his body, all attributes increase, but in a sense, he is still a powerful human. Just like a normal human, he cannot pull out his entire strength.
Even a bodybuilder cannot throw a punch as strong as a trained boxer. Here, it is the same. Martial techniques let them use their full strength.
Su Yang then glanced at the luminous panel in his vision.
[ Su Yang
First Realm: Blood Qi
Entry: 10/100
10 Undying Phoenix Blood Qi Wisps! ]
[ Undying Phoenix Blood Qi Forging Art
Introduction 10/100
Characteristics: Nirvana Flames ]
[ Undying Phoenix Fist
Introduction 1/100 ]
"Great." He grinned, wiping away his sweat.
Grr!
His stomach protested in hunger as he pulled the dead bear’s body from his storage pouch. Using Nirvana Flames, he started a fire. He then ate it.
By the time he had his fill, the moon had risen to its peak, illuminating the world with white light.
He came out of the cave, and cool moonlight fell on him. He yawned. "It took me hours to learn this Phoenix Fist technique." He sighed as he folded his hands. Tilting his head, he mused, ’How come it’s so different?’
The technique he read from the Undying Phoenix Art was changed completely under his cheat. From the standing method, breathing, and the way the Blood Qi was used.
A few seconds later, his eyes shone with light.
He smiled. "Master mentioned universal, so my cheat must have changed it to suit me."
If Bai Ruo heard him, her eyes would pop out. How could someone master her bullshit art and also provide an answer to why her technique worked out?
"Now, let’s go and master Phoenix Step." He decided on the movement technique, as he could run away if he encountered trouble.
"But first, let’s hunt more animals." He clicked his tongue as he glanced at the pile of bones in a corner. He had devoured everything. He needed more meat if he wanted to train.
"It would be better if I encountered a beast." He mumbled.
A few hours later, in an open field.
Su Yang glared at the tiger in front of him. It was emitting a golden-black aura as it stood two metres tall while on four legs. Its orange-striped fur seemed to glow in the night. The tiger’s crimson eyes locked onto him, and its bloodthirsty and murderous intent was clearly visible.
It licked its lips and snarled. "Roar!"
"A Demonic Beast!" Su Yang grinned instead of being afraid. He was happy, as the tiger was a Demonic Beast, not a regular animal.
After one day, he had finally met a Demonic Beast.
Author’s note: I took a break for the past week. Now updates will be regular. Be sure to support the book!