That night.
Splash
Jiang Ning emerged from the depths of the dark lake.
The icy, bone-chilling water dripped continuously from his body onto the ground beneath his feet.
The next moment.
His inner energy surged, causing his robes to billow.
In just a few breaths, all the water on his body evaporated.
His long hair hung loose, and his robes became soft and dry.
[Skills]: Five Animals Fist (Fifth Breakthrough 267/6000) (Traits: Essence Stored in the Five Organs, Five Elements Spirit, Fist Technique Grandmaster, Bear-Tiger Physique, Five Elements Body)
After glancing at the panel, he closed it.
After sending Bai Luoyu off earlier that day, he had spent the entire day practicing the Five Beasts Fist.
The breakthrough in his fist technique had allowed him to personally feel the improvement in efficiency.
Whether it was the efficiency of strengthening his qi and blood or absorbing the spiritual essence of the Five Elements from the world around him, both had increased compared to before.
However, after practicing the fist technique for most of the day, he had already made a decision to temporarily set it aside.
Based on his calculations, the next breakthrough in the fist technique would require not 2,000 source energy points, but 5,000.
Up until now, the total amount of source energy points he had ever accumulated was roughly around that number.
How much time would it take to gather another 5,000 points?
Thus, at this stage, spending all his time on the fist technique no longer offered much cost-effectiveness.
Without a breakthrough transformation, the increase in experience points did not bring significant improvements to his strength.
Moreover, at the fifth-rank level, what influenced his martial progress the most was not the Five Animals Fist, but the Internal Alchemy Cultivation Technique.
Next, his gaze swept over the panel again.
[Skills]:
Literacy (Fifth Breakthrough 1133/6000) (Traits: Photographic Memory, Enhanced Senses, Quick Thinking, Outstanding Comprehension, Heavenly Eye)
Five Animals Fist (Fifth Breakthrough 267/6000) (Traits: Essence Stored in the Five Organs, Five Elements Spirit, Fist Technique Grandmaster, Bear-Tiger Physique, Five Elements Body)
Firewood Splitting Saber Technique (Sixth Breakthrough 7000/7000) (Traits: Versatility, Saber Like Thunder, Mastery of the Saber, Unity of Man and Saber, Natural Saber Talent)
Internal Alchemy Cultivation Technique (Small Achievement 3221/5000)
Indestructible Vajra Body (Small Achievement 453/5000)
Water Affinity (Sixth Breakthrough 7000/7000) (Traits: Underwater Breathing, Water Manipulation+, Water Spirit Affinity, Cloud and Rain Control, Water Spirit Body)
Wind and Thunder Archery (Third Breakthrough 49/4000) (Traits: Wind and Thunder Breath, Heartfelt Archery, Wind and Thunder Arrows)
Water-Fire True Force (Second Breakthrough 48/3000) (Traits: Water-Fire Immortal Robe, Mastery of Water and Fire)
Painting (Great Achievement 873/1000)
He had now mastered many skills.
Nine in total.
Excluding Painting, which he did not prioritize, there were still eight skills.
For him, this was quite a diverse range.
He knew that for his panel, the number of skills was not as important as their refinement.
Each breakthrough brought a noticeable transformation.
This kind of transformation was what provided the greatest boost to his strength.
At the same time, it granted him traits that made him increasingly extraordinary.
Therefore, unless necessary, he had no intention of learning too many skills and scattering his focus.
With limited time and energy, the more skills he pursued, the harder it was to specialize and master them.
After reviewing all his skills on the panel, he couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
Both Water Affinity and the Firewood Splitting Saber Technique on the panel were limited by source energy points. Even though their experience points had long been maxed out, they couldn't break through to bring about a transformation.
As for the Indestructible Vajra Body, although he knew the power of the golden body, he wasn't yet willing to grind the experience points for this skill.
Compared to the Indestructible Vajra Body, which directly enhanced his combat power, what he needed more now was to improve his efficiency in gathering rare treasures.
When diving into the Luo River, the stronger his spiritual power, the higher his efficiency in searching for rare treasures.
Before going to Dongling City, he had already decided that he must scour the Luo River waters around Dongling County for rare treasures.
Absorbing these treasures could provide him with source energy points, which might allow breakthroughs in Water Affinity and the Saber Technique.
The resulting strength improvement would be more direct compared to the Indestructible Vajra Body.
As for the Wind and Thunder Archery, which had undergone three breakthroughs, and the Water-Fire True Force, which had undergone two breakthroughs
At this stage, the source energy points required for them were not cost-effective.
For the Wind and Thunder Archery to achieve its fourth breakthrough, it would require not only 4,000 experience points but also a full 1,000 source energy points.
For the Water-Fire True Force to achieve its third breakthrough, it would require 3,000 experience points and 500 source energy points.
After organizing his thoughts, it took only a moment for his gaze to settle on the Literacy skill.
"This is the one!"
"The breakthrough for Literacy requires a manageable amount of source energy points."
"Moreover, I'll soon be taking the imperial exams, so it's the perfect time to review related books."
"On top of that, the transformation in spiritual power will expand my perception range, which will help when I search for treasures in the lake later."
Considering the multiple benefits, Jiang Ning's resolve grew firmer.
The next moment, he headed toward his courtyard.
As he stepped into his courtyard
Jiang Ning suddenly paused.
His gaze turned toward his room.
"Someone's here?" His ears twitched slightly as he detected faint, rhythmic breathing coming from inside his room.
Then.
He pressed his right index and middle fingers against the center of his brow, activating the Heavenly Eye.
With another glance toward his room, his vision pierced through.
"It's her!" Jiang Ning's eyes narrowed.
With the Heavenly Eye activated, his third eye could see through illusions and penetrate all obstructions, whether tangible or intangible. Nothing could block his sight.
He thus saw Xiao Emei clinging tightly to the top of his bed in his room.
Even though Xiao Emei's face was now covered by a black cloth, revealing only a pair of bright eyes, Jiang Ning's gaze easily pierced through the fabric obscuring her features.
The next moment, he lifted his leg and continued walking toward his room.
At the same time.
Inside the room.
Xiao Emei carefully pressed herself against the bed canopy. When she heard the sound of footsteps approaching from the courtyard outside, she instinctively suppressed her breathing.
Creak
As the door was pushed open, the cold wind from the courtyard rushed into the room, forcing Xiao Emei to narrow her eyes slightly.
Blocked by the bed curtains, her field of vision was limited.
She could only hear the movements near the door. With no lamplight to illuminate the space, her sight was plunged into complete darkness, leaving her unable to discern the figure entering.
"Is it Jiang Ning?" she wondered silently, her eyes narrowing further.
Then, she heard the door close again, and the howling wind inside the room abruptly ceased.
Footsteps began approaching her.
A few breaths later.
Xiao Emei heard the footsteps pause, followed by the sound of a candle being lit. Warm candlelight instantly filled the entire room.
She could now see the lower half of Jiang Ning's body.
"It's him!!" Her pupils contracted sharply.
The clothes Jiang Ning wore were the same as those from earlier in the day no change whatsoever.
At that moment.
She saw Jiang Ning take another step toward the bed where she was hiding.
Watching this, she quietly tightened her grip on the dagger in her hand. Her eyes underwent a subtle change her pupils constricted, and her breathing stopped entirely.
The next instant.
She saw Jiang Ning's head and neck come into view.
"Now!" Xiao Emei's gaze sharpened.
The razor-sharp dagger in her hand shot straight toward Jiang Ning's shoulder.
The purpose of this strike was to determine the color of Jiang Ning's bones.
Were they silver like iron, black like profound metal, or translucent like jade?
From the hue of his bones, she could deduce which stage of the sixth rank Jiang Ning had reached, allowing her to strategize accordingly how to deal with him, how to counter him.
But in that split second, at that critical moment.
She suddenly saw Jiang Ning raise his head, his eyes meeting hers with an unfathomable calm, not a trace of surprise in his gaze.
"Something's wrong!!" Her expression shifted slightly.
The next moment.
She saw Jiang Ning's right-hand shoot upward from below, swift as a dragon's claw, so fast that it arrived before her strike could land, firmly grasping her sleeve.
"Miss Xiao, why resort to such underhanded tactics?"
Jiang Ning's voice rang in her ears.
At these words, Xiao Emei's mind momentarily faltered.
She had never expected that despite being so thoroughly concealed her entire body wrapped in black cloth, with only her eyes exposed Jiang Ning would still recognize her identity at a single glance.
Her momentary distraction slowed her reaction, leaving her unable to muster her strength in time.
At the same time.
She suddenly felt the overwhelming force emanating from Jiang Ning's grip on her wrist.
The sheer magnitude of this power was something she had never encountered in her life.
Even the strongest opponent she had ever faced a peak fifth-rank expert whose inner energy had solidified into armor, whose organs resonated with thunder, whose body had been repeatedly tempered by inner energy had never possessed such inhuman strength.
At this moment.
Jiang Ning held Xiao Emei's wrist, not giving her even a moment to gather her strength and break free from his grasp.
He sank his stance, drawing power from his feet, his tendons channeling the force of his entire body.
With his right hand still gripping Xiao Emei's wrist, he yanked her downward with terrifying force.
Xiao Emei was pulled down like a sandbag and slammed into the floor with lightning speed.
BOOM
A deafening crash echoed.
The wooden floor beneath them shattered instantly, sending up a cloud of dust.
Even though Xiao Emei had activated her inner energy to protect her body, the impact left her feeling as though her entire frame had been dislocated.
Yet, despite this, she dared not hesitate for even a second.
From the sheer physical power Jiang Ning had just displayed, she knew close-quarters combat would be futile.
The disparity in their physical prowess was far too great.
Though she couldn't comprehend how Jiang Ning possessed such monstrous, inhuman strength, she had no time to dwell on it.
Her inner energy erupted from her dantian, surging through her meridians.
With her energy unleashed, her body sprang up like a fleeing hare.
But at that very instant.
ROAR
A tiger's roar exploded in her ears.
Her vision was instantly engulfed by raging flames.
Though Xiao Emei hadn't locked eyes with Jiang Ning, the tiger's roar conjured the image of a blazing tiger in her mind.
The tiger threw its head back and roared, its aura devouring mountains and rivers.
"Fist Intent!"
"Third-level Fist Intent!!!"
Her mind was stunned by the shock, and the internal energy within her body momentarily spiraled out of control.
At the same time, she felt the terrifying wave of scorching heat beside her, and her mental defenses instantly collapsed.
At this moment.
A fierce tiger raised its right paw and brought it down with brutal force upon the slender, black-clad woman beneath it.
Amid the eruption of flames, the woman's figure was instantly engulfed.
Just as Xiao Emei had leaped up, she felt a foot stomp down hard on her back.
"No!"
A flash of fear crossed her mind. The internal energy in her dantian erupted with all her might even at the cost of damaging her meridians, she dared not hold back, channeling everything to protect her vital points.
Boom
The tiger's right paw slammed down, flames surging forth, filling the cramped room.
The blazing light inside instantly illuminated the dark courtyard outside.
As the flames dissipated, the fiery tiger vanished.
Though the entire room was made of wood, there was no trace of burning.
Yet the floor beneath was scorched black, and Xiao Emei's black nightclothes had turned into charred fragments clinging to her body.
The next moment.
A flicker of surprise passed through Jiang Ning's eyes.
He crouched slightly, his right hand shooting out like a dragon emerging from the sea, striking between Xiao Emei's arms.
Crack
Crack
Two crisp sounds rang out, and Xiao Emei's arms twisted unnaturally, clearly dislocated.
In an instant.
Xiao Emei's face twisted in agony. The charred remains of her nightclothes, which had adhered to her skin, flaked off as her expression contorted.
But to Jiang Ning, this sight only evoked silent admiration.
"Impressive!"
The carbonized fabric had peeled away from Xiao Emei's face, yet not a single burn mark remained.
Even the hair on her head was barely sung.
This forced Jiang Ning to acknowledge that Xiao Emei's mastery of internal energy far surpassed his own.
At this moment, he recalled a technique he had once seen in the Fifth-Class True Interpretations a method called Heavenly Garment.
Heavenly Garment, seamless, repels fire and water.
"Now it seems that technique is the most valuable part of the Fifth-Class True Interpretations!"
Witnessing this scene, Jiang Ning immediately grasped the brilliance of the technique.
Had Xiao Emei not mastered something similar, had she not shielded herself with internal energy
The flames just now would have left severe burns all over her body.
His thoughts raced, flashing through his mind in mere moments.
Without hesitation, his hand pressed against Xiao Emei's exposed back.
"No!!" A plea escaped from beneath him.
Yet Jiang Ning showed no mercy.
The internal energy in his dantian erupted, surging into Xiao Emei's body like a tidal wave.
The energy Xiao Emei had just mustered crumbled instantly before Jiang Ning's overwhelming force.
"Please, no!!" she begged again.
She could feel her meridians being torn apart one after another under the onslaught of Jiang Ning's energy.
In just a few breaths.
Jiang Ning withdrew his right hand.
The meridians inside Xiao Emei were now in complete disarray.
Especially the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians all had suffered severe tears.
In this state, even the slightest attempt to circulate internal energy would bring unbearable pain.
"Miss Xiao, get up," Jiang Ning said coolly.
Then he added a warning: "Don't even think of running. The moment you step out of this room, Luo River will have one more female corpse."
These words sent a shudder through Xiao Emei's heart.
Gritting her teeth against the pain wracking her entire body, she propped herself up on her elbows and slowly rose.
Her eyes, fixed on Jiang Ning crouching before her, now regarded him as if he were a devil.
Never had she imagined she would fall into Jiang Ning's hands let alone so completely, with her life and dignity now at his mercy.
No one understood the state of her body better than she did.
Both arms were dislocated, meridians torn, internal organs damaged, and bleeding internally in multiple places.
Such injuries had stripped her of any ability to resist.
"Commander Jiang, you are ruthless!!" Xiao Emei hissed through clenched teeth.
"You sneaked into my room in the dead of night, seeking my life. And yet, Miss Xiao, you call me ruthless?"
"I never intended to kill you. I only wanted to test your limits."
"And so I didn't kill you either I spared your life," Jiang Ning retorted.
Silence fell over the room.
"Stop looking around. No one is coming to save you," Jiang Ning said coldly, watching as Xiao Emei put on a pitiful expression.
Outside, Lü Yi and Jiang Li had already been instructed via Sound Transmission to stay away.
Hearing this, Xiao Emei silently activated the tendons in her body.
With two soft cracks, her dislocated arms snapped back into place.
Then she adjusted her posture and sat upright on the floor.
As she moved, the charred remnants of her clothing fell away in pieces, revealing large patches of fair skin.
Xiao Emei hastily covered the exposed areas, her heart burning with humiliation.
Never before had she been so exposed, her body laid bare for another's gaze like a mere object.
And now, in this insignificant little county town, she had been reduced to this forced to display herself under Jiang Ning's scrutinizing eyes.
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